ELAZIG GUNISIGI NEWSPAPER – March 2011
OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY, LEGISLATION, AND US
The fundamental and primary concern in construction work, as in all types of work, should be occupational safety and worker health. This matter concerns both public and private institutions. On Saturday, March 26, 2011, the Elazığ Branch of the Chamber of Civil Engineers (TMMOB) organized an important seminar on this topic.
The seminar, held at the Elazığ Chamber of Commerce and Industry Conference Hall, featured speakers, Mining Engineer Yaşar MERT and Industrial Engineer Yaşar EDE.
The first speaker, Yaşar EDE, provided an introductory presentation about FER Education Center, which organized the seminar free of charge. He then made valuable comments on the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) issue. He emphasized that, starting this year, construction projects without an appropriate EPC would not be allowed, and that this certificate would be required when selling existing buildings.
The Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) is explained in Law No. 5627 on energy efficiency. The purpose of this law is to ensure the efficient use of energy, prevent waste, reduce the economic burden of energy costs, and improve energy efficiency in the use of energy resources, while also protecting the environment. The law defines the EPC as “a document that includes at least the building’s energy needs and energy consumption classification, insulation characteristics, and the efficiency of heating and/or cooling systems.”
Energy consumption and its economic impact are always top priorities for countries. Including buildings in this important issue is an inevitable step. However, as is often the case, the law was prepared without consulting the relevant institutions, organizations, and individuals sufficiently, resulting in numerous deadlocks. Within ten years, it will be mandatory for existing buildings (homes and workplaces) to obtain an energy performance certificate.
The problem here is that when an apartment is sold in a building, the energy performance certificate of the entire building is required for the title deed transaction. Why should the apartment owner bear the cost of the EPC for the entire building alone? Such problems must certainly be solved. If only the law-makers had consulted with the relevant parties when preparing such a technical law!
The second speaker, Yaşar Mert, was a class A occupational safety expert. I believe his explanations were extremely useful for both the public and private sectors. He mentioned that the Labor Law No. 4857 brought significant innovations in terms of occupational safety.
He stated that those working in heavy and dangerous sectors, such as construction, must take necessary precautions in accordance with the laws and regulations to avoid unnecessary issues in case of accidents. He emphasized that the precautions taken must be documented. Words alone are not enough; there must be documented evidence of every action taken.
The Q&A session of the seminar was also very helpful. Both engineers and university students found answers to the questions in their minds.
The seminar was quite important in two respects. First, many deficiencies in the newly passed laws were highlighted. If consultations had been held while these laws were still in draft form, such problems would have been minimized. The consultation, or as we say nowadays, collective intelligence, helps minimize errors. The other conclusion is that we still do not give the necessary importance to occupational safety. Occupational safety is not just about the “ENTRY TO CONSTRUCTION IS DANGEROUS AND PROHIBITED” sign. Both employers and employees must be aware of and apply occupational safety rules. This is an important practice for national benefit.
We extend our thanks to everyone who contributed to the seminar, especially to Mr. Hıdır KAYA, the Chairman of the Elazığ Branch of the Chamber of Civil Engineers (İMO).
MAY ALLAH HAVE MERCY ON HIM...
We have lost Elazığ's former Mayor and our Member of Parliament, Mr. Hamza YANILMAZ. I believe that during his tenure as mayor, he made significant contributions to our city. In this first article after his passing, I pray to Almighty God for his soul, and I extend my condolences to his family, relatives, friends, the AKP organization, and all of our fellow citizens.