what is fall protection in alberta

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# Part 9 Fall Protection (cont.) ## Instruction of workers (cont.) Section 142 OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE Part 9 AR 191/2021 ## Full body harness - 142(1) An employer must ensure that (a) a full body harness manufactured on or after March 31, 2023 is approved to (i) CSA Standard Z259.10-18, Full body harnesses, (ii) ANSI/ASSE Standard Z359.1-2007, Safety requirements for personal fall arrest systems, subsystems and components, or (iii) CEN Standard EN 361:2007, Personal protective equipment against falls from a height - Full body harnesses, - and (b) a worker using a personal fall arrest system wears and uses a full body harness. - 142(2) A worker using a personal fall arrest system must wear and use a full body harness. AR 191/2021 s142;242/2022 ## Body belt - 142.1 An employer must ensure that (a) a body belt manufactured on or after July 1, 2009 is approved to (i) CSA Standard Z259.1-05, Body belts and saddles for work positioning and travel restraint, (ii) ANSI/ASSE Standard A10.32-2004, Fall Protection Systems - American National Standard for Construction and Demolition Operations, or (iii) CEN Standard EN 358: 2000, Personal protective equipment for work positioning and prevention of falls from a height — Belts for work positioning and restraint and work positioning lanyards, and (b) a worker uses a body belt only as part of a travel restraint system or as part of a fall restrict system. ## Lanyard 142.2(1) An employer must ensure that a lanyard manufactured on or after March 31, 2023 is approved to (a) CSA Standard Z259.11-17, Personal energy absorbers and lanyards, (b) ANSI/ASSE Standard Z359.1-2007, Safety requirements for personal fall arrest systems, subsystems and components, or (c) CEN Standard EN 354:2002, Personal protective equipment against falls from a height - Lanyards. - 142.2(2) An employer must ensure that a lanyard used by a worker is made of wire rope or other material appropriate to …

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# OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE (cont.) ## Rope adjustment device for work positioning (cont.) Section 149 OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE Part 9 AR 191/2021 (c) NFPA Standard 1983, Standard on Life Safety Rope and Equipment for Emergency Services, 2006 Edition, classified as general or light duty. ## Wood pole climbing - 149(1) An employer must ensure that a worker working on or from a wood pole uses fall restrict equipment that is approved to CSA Standard Z259.14-01, Fall Restrict Equipment for Wood Pole Climbing, in combination with (a) a lineman's body belt that (i) is approved to CSA Standard Z259.3-M1978 (R2003), Lineman's Body Belt and Lineman's Safety Strap, or (ii) complies with section 142.1, - or (b) a full body harness that complies with section 142(1). - 149(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to fall restrict equipment or a lineman's body belt in use before April 30, 2004. ## Equipment compatibility 150 An employer must ensure that all components of a fall protection system are compatible with one another and with the environment in which they are used. ## Inspection and maintenance - 150.1 An employer must ensure that the equipment and personal protective equipment used as part of a fall protection system is (a) inspected by the worker as required by the manufacturer before it is used on each work shift, (b) kept free from substances and conditions that could contribute to deterioration of the equipment and personal protective equipment, and (c) re-certified as specified by the manufacturer. ## Removal from service 150.2(1) An employer must ensure that equipment and personal protective equipment used as part of a fall protection system is removed from service and either returned to the manufacturer or destroyed if (a) it is defective, or (b) it has come into contact with excessive heat, a chemical or any other substance that may corrode or otherwise damage the fall protection system. 150.2(2) An employer must…

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# Part 9 Fall Protection (cont.) ## Fall protection plan (cont.) Section 141 OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE AR 191/2021 Part 9 (d) that clearance distances below the work area, if applicable, have been confirmed as sufficient to prevent a worker from striking the ground or an object or level below the work area, (e) the procedures used to assemble, maintain, inspect, use and disassemble the fall protection system, where applicable, and (f) the rescue procedures to be used if a worker falls and is suspended by a personal fall arrest system or safety net and needs to be rescued. - 140(3) The employer must ensure that the fall protection plan is available at the work site and is reviewed with workers before work with a risk of falling begins. - 140(4) The employer must ensure that the plan is updated when conditions affecting fall protection change. ## Instruction of workers 141(1) An employer must ensure that a worker is trained in the safe use of the fall protection system before allowing the worker to work in an area where a fall protection system must be used. - 141(2) The training referred to in subsection (1) must include the following: (a) a review of current Alberta legislation pertaining to fall protection; (b) an understanding of what a fall protection plan is; (c) fall protection methods a worker is required to use at a work site; (d) identification of fall hazards; (e) assessment and selection of specific anchors that the worker may use; (f) instructions for the correct use of connecting hardware; (g) information about the effect of a fall on the human body, including (i) maximum arresting force, (ii) the purpose of shock and energy absorbers, (iii) swing fall, and (iv) free fall; (h) pre-use inspection; (i) emergency response procedures to be used at the work site, if necessary; (j) practice in (i) inspecting, fitting, adjusting and connecting fall protection systems and components, and (ii) emergenc…

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# Part 8 Entrances, Walkways, Stairways and Ladders Entrances, Walkways, Stairways (cont.) ## Fall protection (cont.) Section 138 OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE Part 9 AR 191/2021 # Part 9 Fall Protection ## Rescue personnel exemption 138 Rescue personnel involved in training or in providing emergency rescue services may use equipment, personal protective equipment and practices other than those specified in this Part. ## General protection 139(1) An employer and a supervisor must ensure that a worker is protected from falling if a worker may fall, (a) at a temporary or permanent work area, a vertical distance of 3 metres or more, (b) at a temporary or permanent work area, a vertical distance of less than 3 metres if there is an unusual possibility of injury, (c) at a temporary or permanent work area, into or onto a hazardous substance or object, or through an opening in a work surface, or (d) at a permanent work area, a vertical distance of more than 1.2 metres and less than 3 metres. - 139(2) For the purposes of this section, there is an unusual possibility of injury if the injury may be worse than an injury from landing on a solid, flat surface. - 139(3) Subject to subsection (5), an employer must install a guardrail. - 139(4) Repealed. - 139(5) Subject to subsection (6), if the use of a guardrail is not reasonably practicable, an employer and a supervisor must ensure that a worker uses a travel restraint system that meets the requirements of this Part. - 139(6) Subject to subsection (7), if the use of a travel restraint system is not reasonably practicable, an employer and a supervisor must ensure that a worker uses a personal fall arrest system that meets the requirements of this Part. - 139(7) If the use of a personal fall arrest system is not reasonably practicable, an employer and a supervisor must ensure that a worker uses equally effective controls. - 139(8) A worker must use a fall protection system as required by this section…

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# Part 9 Fall Protection (cont.) ## Connectors, carabiners and snap hooks (cont.) Section 144 # OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE Part 9 AR 191/2021 (ii) the name or trademark of the manufacturer. AR 191/2021 s143;242/2022 ## Fall arresters 144 An employer must ensure that a fall arrestor manufactured on or after March 31, 2023 is approved to (a) CSA Standard Z259.2.4-15, Fall arresters and vertical rigid rails, (a.1) CSA Standard Z259.2.5-17, Fall arresters and vertical lifelines, (b) ANSI/ASSE Standard Z359.1-2007, Safety requirements for personal fall arrest systems, subsystems and components, or (c) CEN Standard EN 353-2:2002, Personal protective equipment against falls from a height - Part 2: Guided type fall arrestors including a flexible anchor line. - AR 191/2021 s144;242/2022 ## Self-retracting device 145 An employer must ensure that a self-retracting device manufactured on or after March 31, 2023 and used with a personal fall arrest system is (a) approved to CSA Standard Z259.2.2-17, Self-retracting devices, (b) anchored above the worker's head unless the manufacturer's specifications allow the use of a different anchor location, and (c) used in a manner that minimizes the hazards of swinging and limits the swing drop distance to 1.2 metres if a worker falls. - AR 191/2021 s145;242/2022 ## Descent control device 146 An employer must ensure that an automatic or manual descent control device manufactured on or after July 1, 2009 and used with a personal fall arrest system is approved to (a) CSA Standard Z259.2.3-99 (R2004), Descent Control Devices, (b) CEN Standard EN 341:1997, Personal protective equipment against falls from a height — Descender devices, or (c) NFPA Standard 1983, Standard on Life Safety Rope and Equipment for Emergency Services, 2006 edition, classified as general or light duty. ## Life safety rope 147(1) An employer must ensure that a life safety rope manufactured on or after March 31, 2023 and used in a fall…

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# OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE (cont.) Section 1 OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE AR 191/2021 Part 1 (b) mobile communications systems, (c) remote control signal stations, (d) industrial radiofrequency heaters, (e) equipment used for geophysical surveys, (f) radar, (g) overhead power lines, and (h) any other source of electromagnetic radiation; "emergency first aider" repealed AR 242/2022 s2; "emergency medical responder" means an emergency medical responder registered under the Paramedics Profession Regulation (AR 151/2016); "emergency response plan" means the emergency response plan required under Part 7; "energy-isolating device" means a device that prevents the transmission or release of hazardous energy; "equivalent dose" means the amount of energy of ionizing radiation, in millisieverts, absorbed in a unit of mass of irradiated tissue or organ multiplied by the appropriate radiation weighting factor, as determined in accordance with the 2007 Recommendations of the International Commission on Radiological Protection. ICRP Publication 103. Ann. ICRP 2007; 37 (2-4); "excavation" in Part 32 means a dug out area of ground but does not include a tunnel, underground shaft or pit; "excess noise" means noise that exceeds the limits specified in section 218; "explosive" repealed AR 202/2024 s2; "explosive atmosphere" means an atmosphere that (a) contains a substance in a mixture with air, under atmospheric conditions and at a concentration between the substance's lower explosive limit and upper explosive limit, and (b) is capable of producing destructive effects to adjacent objects or of killing or injuring a person; "exposed worker" means a worker who may reasonably be expected to work in a restricted area at least 30 work days in a 12-month period; "fall arresting device" means a part of a worker's personal protective equipment that stops the worker's fall and does not allow the worker to fall farther; "fall protection system" means …

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# Part 9 Fall Protection (cont.) ## Lanyard (cont.) Section 142.3 OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE Part 9 AR 191/2021 142.2(3) Despite subsection (2), if a worker works near an energized conductor or in a work area where a lanyard made of conductive material cannot be used safely, the employer must ensure that the worker uses another effective means of fall protection. AR 191/2021 s142.2;242/2022 ## Shock absorber 142.3(1) An employer must ensure that if a shock absorber or shock absorbing lanyard is used as part of a personal fall arrest system, it is approved to one of the following standards if manufactured on or after March 31, 2023: (a) CSA Standard Z259.11-17, Personal energy absorbers and lanyards; (b) ANSI/ASSE Standard Z359.1-2007, Safety requirements for personal fall arrest systems, subsystems and components; (c) CEN Standard EN 355:2002, Personal protective equipment against falls from a height - Energy absorbers. - 142.3(2) An employer must ensure that a personal fall arrest system consists of a full body harness and a lanyard equipped with a shock absorber or similar device. - 142.3(3) Despite subsection (2), a shock absorber or similar device is not required if the personal fall arrest system is used in accordance with section 151. - 142.3(4) Despite subsection (2), a shock absorber is required with a fixed ladder fall arrest system only if it is required by the manufacturer of the system. AR 191/2021 s142.3;242/2022 ## Connectors, carabiners and snap hooks 143(1) An employer must ensure that connecting components of a fall arrest system consisting of carabiners, D-rings, O-rings, oval rings, self-locking connectors and snap hooks manufactured on or after March 31, 2023 are approved, as applicable, to (a) CSA Standard Z259.2.5-17, Fall arresters and vertical lifelines, (b) ANSI/ASSE Standard Z359.1-2007, Safety requirements for personal fall arrest systems, subsystems and components, (c) CEN Standard EN 362:2004, Personal…