Run a Safe Operation

Guardian program activities have inherent risks. Guardians often work in isolated or remote locations far from emergency response or medical personnel. With this in mind, the number one priority of any Indigenous Guardian program should be to keep everyone safe. This requires assessing, managing and mitigating potential risks and implementing solid safety policies and emergency procedures. Without these in place, there is increased risk of injury and possible loss of life, costly damage to boats, vehicles and equipment and the risk of damaging the credibility of your program.

Running a Safe Program

Explore this section to learn:

Create a Safe Operations Plan that identifies potential risks, identifies safety policies and procedures to mitigate risks, describes program equipment and maintenance schedules, and addresses other aspects of safety of your operations.
Involve your community, guardian crew, and experts in developing your Safe Operations Plan to ensure it accurately reflects the specific risks associated with your program activities and local conditions.
Create easy to read and use documents that outline safety policies and procedures. These should be easy to understand and follow and always available to staff to reference.
Make sure staff are well trained in what to do when unsafe conditions or circumstances arise. Support them by regularly briefing them, testing their knowledge, or running through mock scenarios. Ensure staff in the office also know what to do should a distress call come in or crews not return on schedule.
Make equipment inspection and maintenance a routine part of your program. Set regular times for inspection, gear checks, maintenance, asset reporting, etc. Building this in to work plans will ensure that field equipment, vehicles, etc. are in good working order and potential concerns are identified before a problem arises.

Worksheet

Overview Worksheet - Run a Safe Program

This worksheet provides some questions to help think through how to run a safe Indigenous Guardian program. Download it now

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Something I've learned from the Kitasoo/Xaixais elders in Klemtu is the importance of traveling on the ocean with humility. The sea changes moods quickly and with little warning. And doing the little things right is important in keeping you safe on the water: do you have the required safety equipment, spare parts, a tool kit, emergency communication devices, flares? Do you check the oil every day and do you check your belts and coolant? These small things need to become a habit and they might just save your life one day.

Tim McGrady, General Manager, Farewell Harbour Lodge

Tips for Safe Operations

Overview Worksheet - Run a Safe Program