Health and Safety in Employment (Pressure Equipment, Cranes and Passenger Ropeways) Regulations 1999
Status quo and problem
Currently, the Health and Safety in Employment (Pressure Equipment, Cranes and Passenger Ropeways) Regulations 1999 (PECPR Regulations) cover compressed gas cylinders in a place of work. This should fall within the jurisdiction of the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms (HSNO) Act as Parliament intended, following the revocation of the Dangerous Goods Regulations in 2006. This situation creates potential confusion over the coverage of regulations.
However, applying the Interpretation Act means that the reference in the PECPR Regulations to the Dangerous Goods (Class 2 – gases) Regulations could be read as the Compressed Gas Regulations that replaced them. This would mean that the coverage issue does not matter in practice as the Interpretation Act would apply.
Additionally, low hazard aerosols and cartridges are caught by the wide definition of the PECPR Regulations, so they are unintentionally covered. Due to their minimal hazards, these should not be covered by the PECPR Regulations. However, the practical consequence of covering low hazard aerosols and cartridges is nil, as the hazard analysis applied to these items will lead to them not requiring certification or inspection.
Objectives
To ensure that compliance with the regulations is clear, certain and simple to follow. And to ensure that regulations do not cover matters unintended by Parliament.
Preferred option
The preferred option is to amend the PECPR Regulations to:
- replace the reference to the Dangerous Goods (Class 2 – gases) Regulations 1980 in schedule 2 with a reference to the Hazardous Substances (Compressed Gas) Regulations 2004; and
- specifically exclude low hazard aerosols and cartridges
These amendments would improve the clarity and transparency of the RECPR Regulations. They would remove the need for recourse to the Interpretation Act and would improve clarity over what regulations provide compliance for certain items. There are no business compliance costs arising from the proposal.
Consultation
There has been no formal public consultation on the proposal relating to the amendment of the PECPR Regulations. ERMA NZ and MfE have agreed that the PECPR Regulations should be amended.
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