Our Commitment to Health, Safety, and the Environment
Black Elk Energy views social responsibility as important as being fiscally-sound. We are committed to providing a safe, healthy workplace for our employees and contractors.
This means being in full compliance with all health, safety, and environmental (HSE) regulations, laws and standards. To guarantee our commitment, Black Elk Energy carefully selects and trains our employees and provides continuing education to ensure competency.
Our Priorities Simply State Are
- We will not put the safety and well-being of workers at risk, nor will we make decisions that create worker risk.
- We will not knowingly harm the environment and strive to be good stewards of the environment.
- We will always comply with the law and freely report any violations.
- We will strive to maximize our production for the benefit of our members.
- We will strive to produce at a low cost but will not save money at the expense of the above stated priorities.
An integral part in safeguarding these principles is our plan of action called Integrity Management (IM). IM is comprised of several elements including maintaining competence, deploying protective systems and thorough incident investigation. Each of these elements is designed to assure compliance, safety, planning, prevention, and appropriate responses to any situation. We strongly stand by our principles and believe they make our company a better place to work. A brief description of each of the elements of our IM standard follows:
Description of Risk
IM risks can cause serious harm to people, damage assets and the environment and undermine Black Elk Energy's operational reputation.
Intent
Ensure a formal approach to the management of integrity of Black Elk Energy operations throughout their lifecycle from design and construction, through operation and maintenance.
Purposes
Create alignment of the IM requirements necessary to mitigate risk, particularly related to health and safety and environmentally sound operations.
Responsibilities
The responsibility for IM is held by the Operation's organization, specifically the line leaders (Operations Supervisor). There are two main areas of responsibility:
- Scope and Applicability - The scope will include all elements required to ensure each field and ancillary equipment is fit for service - the aim being to avoid loss of containment and to maintain structural integrity throughout the lifecycle of the facility and equipment in question.
- Compliance with the standard - Any deviation with the standard will require Operational Management approval. A monitoring system will be established to ensure full compliance with the standard. Any deviations will require a formal review and followed by corrective actions.
The Integrity Standard
The Standard comprises seven elements listed below:
- Competence - Ensure all those whose work affects IM are clear about their roles and are trained and competent to carry them out.
- Hazard Evaluation and Risk Management - Ensure that IM hazards are systematically identified and the risks assessed and managed.
- Protective Systems - Safeguard people, facilities and the environment by ensuring protective systems and devices are in place to prevent, detect, control or mitigate the effects of IM incidents.
- Management of Change - Ensure that any change with possible IM implications does not take place without a systematic process to examine its impact and manage any associated risks.
- Emergency Response - Ensure Black Elk Energy can appropriately respond to any IM incident to prevent it escalating, and to mitigate the effects on people, assets and the environment.
- Incident Investigation - Reduce the likelihood of future accidents by investigating the causes of any IM incident and sharing the findings.
- Control of Work & Permits - Ensure all work is authorized and coordinated to prevent unintended consequences of simultaneous operations.
