Mining-related environmental disasters: A High Reliability Organisation (HRO) perspective

Abstract

Mining-related disasters can result in catastrophic, long-lasting impacts on the environment. They can also lead to loss of life, destruction of communities and financial loss. These events are continuing to occur, indicating that new methods of analysis and prevention are required. This paper describes the application of a novel approach, which is underpinned by the theoretical concepts derived from the study of High Reliability Organisations (HRO). These organisations are recognised for their ability to establish and maintain a “collective mindset”, a term that describes a situation where the actions of everyone in an organisation are structured by a collective desire to work towards shared goals. Research has also established common patterns that emerged from HROs, which are described as five hallmark characteristics (preoccupation with failure, reluctance to simplify, sensitivity to operations, commitment to resilience, deference to expertise).In this paper, we analyse two mining-related environmental disaster case studies by reviewing the public inquiry reports that were published. We use the inquiry findings to evaluate the extent to which the companies involved had established a collective mindset with respect to avoiding environmental disasters. We also analyse how the actions they had undertaken to avoid an environmental disaster relate to the five hallmark HRO characteristics.Although we recognise that technological factors are vital, the analysis shows focusing on organisational and human factors is also essential when developing strategies to mitigate the risks of environmental disasters. The results suggest that application of HRO theoretical concepts by mining companies can offer new strategies to increase organisational resilience and improve reliability in environmental performance when working towards elimination of mining-related environmental disasters.