Look after your ecologist and your ecologist will look after you!
Once you’ve arranged your ecology surveys it’s easy to sit back and wait for your report without considering the work you’ve asked your ecologist to do. As some of the earliest personnel to visit a site, ecologists may be exposed to high risks, for example when lone working, working at height, working near water or at night.
The Construction Design and Management (CDM) Regulations which came into force in April 2007 place a greater statutory duty on clients to co-ordinate and ensure management of Health and Safety (H&S) of ALL construction work. The Client therefore has a statutory duty to provide contractors with relevant information – for example any existing building drawings or asbestos surveys, and to ensure the competence of contractors.
Additionally, the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 (MHSW) Regulation 3 states ‘that every employer shall make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks to the health and safety of his employees ….. and the risks to the health and safety of persons not in his employment arising out of or connection with the conduct by him of his undertaking’. In any client/contractor relationship, both parties have duties under health and safety law and so the exchange of information between client and Ecologist is vital to comply with current legislation.
AMA’s proactive approach to H&S provides opportunities for both client and ecologist to highlight specific risks for a site. As part of our project instruction paperwork, clients have the opportunity to highlight risks and hazards and we can subsequently plan our surveys to reduce potential risks to our staff. To ensure that we fulfill your H&S requirements, we always undertake a risk assessment prior to undertaking site work, a copy of which can be made available on request. Once updated following site work, the revised Risk Assessment would be passed on if additional hazards are identified. For your piece of mind, it is vital you satisfy yourself that the ecologists visiting your site are competent (i.e. they have sufficient skills and knowledge). By appointing AMA you can be assured that health and safety is taken very seriously, as all our staff undertake regular health and safety and outdoor first aid type training.