Canadian Occupational Safety

24 Canadian Occupational Safety | www.cos-mag.com O n Oct. 19, 2017, a 60-year-old man was installing solar panels on the roof of a two-storey house in New York City. He was testing the anchors installed to hold the panels when he fell off the roof and died. "He was up there yanking on it to make sure it was secure and he came off the roof," Gary Padgett, a retired construction worker, who lives across the street, told the New York Daily News. "He wasn't attached. There was nothing on the roof to tie to... Nothing would have happened to him if he'd been tied on. Nothing. It's such a shame. I stood over here, I watched him die right there." Photovoltaic systems, also known as PV systems or solar power systems, come with a wide variety of hazards that all installers must understand, especially as the green industry continues to ramp up across Canada. In 2013, installations of solar electricity sys- tems grew by nearly 60 per cent over the previous year, and the total value of industry sales was nearly $1.5 billion, up from $1 billion in 2012, according to the Canadian Solar Industries Association (CanSIA). Ontario is one of the top 20 solar electricity markets in the world and Alberta's solar industry has grown by five times since 2015. By 2020, solar electricity will employ around 10,000 people per year in Canada, says CanSIA. Since the solar industry is fairly new, one challenge employers might face is creating a strong culture of safety. A lot of workers are coming in from other industries, such as oil and gas, and are assuming the work will be similar. Although the nature of solar work is high risk, there is a general misconception among installers that they can't get hurt, says Ben Scipione, director of health and safety at Paramount Safety Consulting in Hamilton. "They think it's not required to have any health and safety," he says. "We have worked on many projects where people had a different mindset when it came to safety — they were reactive versus being proactive." There is also the concern that sometimes small business owners (which dominate the solar instal- lation space) use the excuse that they can't afford safety training, or they simply don't think it's neces- sary because they never got hurt on the job. "But an injury is an injury. A fatality is a fatal- ity — it doesn't consider the size of the company," says Scipione, who acknowledges that some small businesses do put a lot of money into safety. "You measure success with safety." When considering the hazards associated with solar panel installation, electricity should be at the top of the list. The moment the panels hit the sun, they are generating power, says Scipione. Disconnecting the grid from the system at the main power breaker does not stop a PV system from producing electrical power in the presence of light (even on cloudy days). Work- ers face the risk of electric shock and arc flash. "Although it might not be much electricity, it's still generating enough that could kill somebody," Scipione says. All workers present during solar installations should be trained in electrical safety as well as lock- out/tagout. A certified engineer must be onsite during an installation to complete the required wiring. Aside from the death of the installer in New York City, another solar installer recently died after fall- ing off a 35-foot roof. He was not wearing fall protection equipment and there were no anchor points on the roof. Yet another installer died when he tripped and fell though a skylight. He was not wearing proper personal protective equipment (PPE). Personal fall arrest equip- ment or guardrails must be put in place. Setting up a permanent guardrail is preferred, says Scipione. The right type of ladder must be used and workers need to be trained on ladder safety. Work at heights training is also essential for these workers, as is making sure they are not afraid of heights. Some workers legitimately may not know they are scared of heights until they get up to the roof, while others just don't want to disclose their fear to their employer. Ed Knaggs, vice-president of HES PV in Victoria, recommends employers give other jobs to those workers who are squeamish at heights. "A person who is afraid of heights can prep all the gear, get it ready, transport it up to the roof so all the people can worker faster — and they are usually quite happy to have that job," he says. There needs to be a rescue plan in place any time a fall arrest system is being used. If an individual does fall, there is only a short period of time to rescue him because the harness cuts off blood flow and can result in suspension trauma, says Knaggs. "That's a big one that a lot of people don't know. They put all the safety measures in place, they are really safe, but the guy can fall off the roof and some- one has to run to find a ladder to get him." One emerging trend in the solar industry is the use of backup battery power. Workers need to have the right PPE and be trained on working with bat- teries. They need to understand that some batteries operate at high temperatures and there is an elec- trical risk from the high voltage/currents of large batteries. Some batteries may catch fire or explode, according to the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work. Batteries also pose chemical hazards to work- ers. There is an electrolyte in the battery that is acid based, and if it spills, it can be very hazardous. "Some batteries have sulphuric acid in them, so there is a corrosive nature to them and the sulphuric acid itself, you don't want to get on clothes or in eyes or on your skin," says Rob Harlan, executive director of the Solar Energy Society of Alberta. A spill response procedure must be in place and workers need to be trained accordingly. In a new industry, new materials are likely to emerge of which occupational health and safety impacts are not yet understood. For example, a recent technology is cadmium telluride, a type of solar cell that is more efficient, but is not yet an industry norm due to its high cost, says Scott Seidel, operations manager at North American Solar Acad- emy in Webbwood, Ont. The location of a solar panel installation can also pose hazards to workers. In San Luis Obispo County, Calif., between 2011-14, there were 44 workers who came down with an infectious disease while constructing two photovoltaic power plants. In response to these incidents, California recom- mended better dust control measures for work sites, equipping earth-moving equipment with HEPA Time pressures, inclement weather, lack of certification can't impede safety as the solar electricity industry grows Here comes the By Amanda Silliker

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