The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) has pleaded guilty for its part in an incident where seven workers received chemical burns whilst disinfecting a Mycoplasma bovis contaminated farm in Southland. 

MPI and the prosecutors, WorkSafe, appeared in the Invercargill District Court on Tuesday (November 23) to discuss the matter. 

The ministry is charged with breaching sections 34 and 36 of the Health and Safety at Work Act. Sentencing has been scheduled for February 11, 2021.

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It pleaded guilty under section 34 of the Health and Safety at Work Act with breaching a duty to consult, cooperate and coordinate activities with other people who had health and safety duties in relation to the same matter.

However, MPI has pleaded not guilty under section 36 of the Health and Safety at Work Act of breaching a primary duty of care to ensure the health and safety of the workers.

In April 2018, seven workers contracted by OneStaff suffered minor burns while cleaning a Winton farm, after using a sodium hydroxide-based cleaning product called X-Clean DOO AWAY.

According to the summary of facts, the chemical had been previously approved for use by MPI for the M. bovis response in Ashburton. 

In 2017, MPI engaged the government-owned enterprise AsureQuality to oversee the cleaning services for disinfecting the M.Bovis outbreak across the county. 

M. bovis is a bacterium that causes an untreatable disease in beef and dairy cattle with symptoms including udder infection, spontaneous abortion, pneumonia, and arthritis.

M.bovis had never been found in New Zealand, the goal was to eliminate it, so the matter was pressing.

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On October 31, 2017, after conducting a pre-qualification process, Assure Quality contracted Industrial Scrub & Sweep (ISS) to carry out cleaning and disinfecting work on infected farms in Oamaru. 

Then in May 2018, in light of “time pressures and MPI critique of the work to date,” ISS decided to introduce X-Clean DOO AWAY to clean the Winton farm.

However, the chemical was not listed in AsureQuality’s safety plan or cleaning and disinfection plan for use in the area. 

Seven workers at the Winton farm received burns from using the product.

The summary of facts states that there was “inadequate communication between AsureQulaity, MPI and ISS about how the health and safety aspects of the cleaning and disinfecting work would be managed.”

On November 6, OneStaff (Queenstown/Invercargill) Limited was fined $38,500 by Judge Russell Walker for failing to ensure the health and safety of its workers and consult with AsureQuality.

AsureQuality was fined $66,000 for failing to ensure the health and safety of its workers and failing to properly co-ordinate with the other companies involved in the cleaning work.

Both AsureQuality and WorkSafe were also ordered to pay $2,392.93 towards WorkSafe’s prosecution costs.