Safety and Conservation Values

The management of risks associated with health and safety and conservation values is essential. 

Health and Safety forms

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Site Plans (Size 15K)
Use this document to indicate the main features of your site. 

Health and Safety Risk Analysis and Management Systems (RAMS) (Size 19K)
Use this document to help you plan and manage any Health and Safety issues that may arise from the activities you have planned. 

Conservation Values Risk Analysis and Management Systems (RAMS) (Size 15K)
Use this document to manage possible damage to special conservation values that may arise from the activities you have planned. 

Declaration of Known Risks (Size 16K)
Where you are operating on publicly owned land, it is the Council's responsiblity to inform you of risk known to the Council. Talk to an appropriate person at the Council and they will complete this list for you. 

All of the items listed below can be managed through your activity or project work; most can actually be improved - but things can also go wrong, resulting in damage.

• Health or safety of you or your team
• Natural Values and Special Features of your site (Conservation Values)
• Tools or other assets
• Team morale
• Public perceptions of your organisation

Following are some notes and tools to help you manage:  

Health and Safety

Please note:  

• In a place of work, the law holds each person accountable for their respective roles in managing health and safety. How this applies to volunteer workers has not been tested in court. However, following the same principles as in a workplace will help you avoid injury - and the law.
• The law requires risks to be eliminated, or if not, then isolated, or if not then minimised. For example, you may choose not to work on a particular site because of some risk it contained (risk eliminated), or you may choose to fence off the risk area (risk isolated), or you may require protective clothing e.g. boots with a good grip, for working on a slippery slope (risk minimised).
• The law requires communication with workers/participants. You can choose how best to do this but at least make sure you inform them of the risks.
• The law requires that "all practicable" steps be taken.

The forms listed above will help guide you through the planning process.  

There are 5 steps you need to take: -

1. Identify risks.
2. Plan to manage those risks - by organising to eliminate, isolate or minimise them. Be aware of industry standards or other guidelines that already exist. They will help you understand what management strategies might be expected.
3. Communicate the risks to participants.
4. Implement your management strategies.
5. Monitor that people are following the guidelines. If necessary, reinforce it to them ("all practicable steps"). (Take your completed Risk Management forms on site and use them as a reminder of how you plan to manage things).

Managing risk doesn't have to be heavy - it just means a little planning - it's better than a serious injury!

Conservation Values

Part of the process of using, improving or restoring a site is making sure the special features or natural values it already has are not damaged in the process.

1. Identify such values or features (use the site plan). Ask:

• What role does vegetation play here (including some weed species) such as stabilising ground, providing shelter, providing shade?
• What are the places that wildlife (lizards, insects, fish, etc) may especially value - as homes, food sources, nesting sites, roosting sites?
• What sensitive features of the site are there that, if disturbed, could result in damage e.g. swathes of reeds that are easily squashed, stream overhangs that may break off if stood on, unusual or threatened plant species, unusual or interesting rock features, scree slopes? 
• What role does stormwater, or groundwater play here? What maintains groundwater or stormwater, what slows it down, spreads it out or keeps it clean?

2. Now, again plan to manage your team's presence and work on the site. Work out how to eliminate any risk to these values or features. If you can't eliminate, then isolate, or if not, then minimise. In this case, then also plan to mitigate the effects you have had. There is a form to help.
   Note: you may also need a Resource Consent. Your planning here will help you through that process. 
3. Communicate the values and risks to participants.
4. Implement your management srategies.
5. Monitor that people are following guidelines. If necessary, reinforce it to them. (Take your completed Risk Management form on site and use them as a reminder of how you plan to manage things).