Mines (Electricity) Regulations, 1972

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Citation: IR SI 51/1972
• Year: 1972

S.I. No. 51 of 1972.
MINES (ELECTRICITY) REGULATIONS, 1972.
ARRANGEMENT OF REGULATIONS.
PART I.
PRELIMINARY AND GENERAL.
Regulation
1. Short title.
2. Commencement.
3. Interpretation.
4. Application.
5. Exemptions.
PART II.
GENERAL SAFETY PROVISIONS.
6. Notice of introduction of electricity.
7. Plan of electrical apparatus.
8. Main switchgear for cutting off electricity.
9. Other means for cutting off electricity.
10. Cutting off electricity where flammable gas is found.
11. Switches, circuit breakers and other control devices.
12 and 13. Switchboards.
14. Suitability of electrical apparatus.
15 and 16. Housing of apparatus.
17. Joints and connections.
18. Cable couplers.
19, 20.
and 21. Earthing.
22. Insulation.
23 and 24. Cables.
25. Flexible cables.
26. Portable apparatus.
27. Portable hand lamps.
28,29.
and 30. Telephone and signalling apparatus.
31. Protection of electrical apparatus.
32. Electric welding apparatus.
33. Apparatus for use where flammable gas may occur.
34 and 35. Working on and testing electrical apparatus.
36. Fencing of outdoor electrical apparatus.
37. Overhead lines.
38. Transformers (23 ; 3/72).
39. Fire fighting appliances.
PART III.
DUTIES OF THE MANAGER AND APPIONTMENT OF ELECTRICIAN
Regulation
40. Introduction of scheme.
41. Notices.
42. Appointment of competent person.
PART IV.
Revocations.
43. Revocations.
S.I. No. 51 of 1972.
MINES (ELECTRICITY) REGULATIONS, 1972.
I, JOSEPH BRENNAN, Minister for Labour, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 11 , 18 , 65 (1), 127 and 146 of the Mines and Quarries Act, 1965 (No. 7 of 1965), and the Labour (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order, 1966 ( S.I. No. 164 of 1966 ), and after due compliance with the provisions of that Act relating to the procedure for making general regulations, hereby make the following regulations:
PART I. PRELIMINARY AND GENERAL.
	1. These Regulations may be cited as the Mines (Electricity) Regulations, 1972.
	2. These Regulations shall come into operation on the 1st day of April, 1972.
	3. In these Regulations——
"the Act" means the Mines and Quarries Act, 1965 (No. 7 of 1965);
"circuit" means an electrical circuit forming a system or branch of a system;
"circuit-breaker" means a mechanical device, including any fuse, capable of making and breaking a circuit under normal and abnormal on load conditions such as that of short-circuit, and unless otherwise specified, means a circuit-breaker designed to break a current automatically;
"conductor" means an electrical conductor designed to be electrically connected to a system;
"danger" means danger to health or danger to life or limb from shock, burn, or other injury to persons employed, or from fire attendant upon the generation, transformation, distribution or use of electrical energy;
"dead" means at or about earth potential, and disconnected from any live system;
"earthed" means connected to the general mass of earth in such manner as will at all times ensure an immediate discharge of electrical energy without danger;
"electrical apparatus" includes any conductor or electric cable and any part of any machinery, apparatus or appliance, being a part designed for the generation, conversion, storage, transmission or utilisation of electricity;
"flammable" means capable of being easily ignited;
"flexible cable" means an electric cable which is designed to be movable while in use;
"incendive sparking" means, in relation to any electrical apparatus, sparking in such circumstances that flammable gas present in the air outside the apparatus might be ignited directly or indirectly;
"inspector" means an inspector appointed under the Act;
"insulating material" means non-conducting material enclosing, surrounding or supporting a conductor or any part thereof, and which is of such quality and thickness as to prevent danger;
"insulation resistance" means the resistance between two conductors or systems of conductors normally separated by insulation, or, the resistance between any such conductors and earth;
"isolated" means disconnected from the source of electrical energy;
"live" means electrically charged;
"manager" means a manager appointed in accordance with section 13 of the Act;
"metallic covering" in relation to any cable means an iron or steel wire covering or a rigid iron, steel or other hard metal conduit pipe or other suitable conductive metallic sheath;
"Minister" means the Minister for Labour;
"overhead line" means any electric line which is placed above ground and in the open air at the surface;
"portable apparatus" means electrical apparatus which, because of the manner in which it is to be used, requires to be moved while it is working, or which is designed so that it can be moved while it is working and includes hand-held portable apparatus;
"portable hand lamp" means an electric lamp for inspection purposes suitable for carrying in the hand and supplied with electrical energy from a circuit by means of a flexible cable other than a transportable electric lamp used intermittently for illuminating or inspecting work places;
"substation" means any building, enclosure or other structure or any part thereof which is large enough to enable a person to enter the building, structure or part after the electrical apparatus therein is in position and which contains apparatus for transforming or converting electrical energy either to or from a voltage exceeding 650 volts (not being apparatus for transforming or converting electrical energy solely for the operation of switchgear or instruments), and includes the said apparatus, together with any other apparatus for switching, controlling or otherwise regulating electrical energy, therein;
"switchboard" means the collection of switches, fuses or conductors and any other apparatus ancillary thereto which is used to control the current or voltage in a system or part of a system;
"system" means an electrical system in which all the conductors and apparatus are electrically connected to a common source of electromotive force;
"telephone apparatus" includes any apparatus used exclusively for telephoning or signalling or telephoning and signalling and which is supplied with electricity from a battery of primary or secondary cells at a voltage not exceeding 50 volts, or in the case only of a telephone, from magneto generators operated by hand;
"transportable apparatus" means an apparatus which, from the nature of its use, requires to be moved to a new position from time to time between the periods when it is working:
	4. Subject to Regulation 5 of these Regulations, these Regulations shall apply in relation to every mine.
	5. (1) These Regulations shall not apply to:
( a ) any electrical apparatus which is neither used nor intended to be used as part of the equipment of a mine, or
( b ) any electrical apparatus which neither forms nor is intended to form part of such equipment, or
( c ) any service line or apparatus on the electrical supply side of the consumer's terminals, or any chamber containing such service lines or apparatus where the supply is given from outside under Electricity Supply Board Regulations; provided that no live part of such line or apparatus is exposed so that it may be touched.
(2) The Minister or an inspector may, by notice served on the owner, exempt any mine from the application in relation thereto of any provision of these Regulations if he is satisfied that the safety of persons employed at the mine will not be prejudiced as a consequence of granting the exemption.
(3) In this regulation "owner" has the meaning assigned to it by Section 4 of the Act.
PART II. GENERAL SAFETY PROVISIONS.
	6. (1) Electricity shall not be introduced in a mine below ground unless, not less than thirty days previously, the manager has served on an inspector notice of the intention so to do in such form and accompanied by such particulars as may be specified by the Minister.
(2) This regulation shall not apply to—
( a ) the installation of electrical apparatus for the maintenance, repair or replacement of electrical apparatus lawfully installed in any part of a mine, before the commencement of these Regulations, or
( b ) the installation (including installation for maintenance, repair or replacement) of telephone or signalling apparatus, and for the purposes of this regulation no account shall be taken of such apparatus already installed.
	7. It shall be the duty of the manager of a mine in which there is installed below ground electrical apparatus, other than telephone or signalling apparatus, to keep at the office at the mine or at such other place as may be approved by an inspector, a plan or plans showing the position of all such electrical apparatus other than portable or transportable apparatus and flexible cables.
	8. (1) There shall be provided at the surface at every mine in which electrical apparatus is installed below ground, suitable switchgear for cutting off the supply of electricity to that apparatus.
(2) The manager of every such mine shall make and secure the efficient carrying out of arrangements whereby an authorised person appointed by him for the purpose of operating such switchgear is in attendance at the surface at the mine whenever any cable below ground in the mine is live.
(3) For the purpose of securing the prompt operation of such switchgear, telephonic communication shall be provided when necessary between the surface and one or more convenient places below ground.
(4) Where necessary to prevent danger, suitable means shall be provided at the surface of the mine to protect electrical apparatus installed below ground from abnormal voltage due to atmospheric electricity.
	9. (1) There shall be provided in...