LOCAL RULES

Alberta site safety inspection report requirements

Your Alberta site safety inspection report has 3 rules to meet. ReportDraft puts every one on your checklist and checks your draft before you sign.

  • A written, dated hazard assessment, repeated when work changes
  • The prime contractor's name posted at the site
  • A fall protection plan on site where falls of 3 m or more lack guardrails
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In Alberta, the Occupational Health and Safety Code (Alberta Regulation 191/2021) builds every site inspection on a written hazard assessment, and its fall protection and excavation parts set what a construction site needs. Here is each rule with a link to the official consolidation from Alberta King's Printer, and what an Alberta site safety inspection should check.

Last reviewed October 12, 2026 against the official sources listed below.

Site safety inspectionALBERTA / SAMPLE

Sample notes, 241 words

Project: Riverside Commons Building B
412 Mill Street
GC: Hartwell Builders
Date: 10/08/2026, 7:15am
Inspected by: Marco Diaz, site superintendent (competent person)
...
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We sorted 25 items into 11 sections and flagged 1 to fix first.

  • Fix firstFall protection and openings

    3rd floor east slab edge: guardrail missing a 12 ft section, framers working nearby.

  • Fix soonScaffolds and aerial lifts

    Scaffold north elevation: tag not signed today, one plank missing at top lift.

  • Fix soonLadders

    Stepladder with cracked side rail in the plumbing gang box, tagged Do Not Use

3 Alberta rules on your checklist, including a written, dated hazard assessment, repeated when work changes.

Still to add

  • RecommendedNotes for site access, housekeeping and storage
  • RecommendedNotes for corrective actions

Filled in for you

Project nameRiverside Commons Building B
Site address412 Mill Street
Prime contractor or employerHartwell Builders
Inspection dateOct 8, 2026
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What Alberta requires

  • An employer assesses a work site and identifies existing and potential hazards before work begins, prepares a report of the results and the methods used to control or eliminate the hazards, records the date it was prepared or revised, and repeats it at reasonably practicable intervals, when a work process is introduced or changes, and before significant additions or alterations to the siteOccupational Health and Safety Code, Alta Reg 191/2021, s. 7
  • The employer involves affected workers in the hazard assessment and in eliminating or controlling the hazards identified; a hazard is eliminated where reasonably practicable, otherwise controlled, using engineering controls first where reasonably practicableOccupational Health and Safety Code, ss. 8 (1), 9 (1), (2)
  • Every construction work site with 2 or more employers has a prime contractor, designated in writing by the person in control of the site (who is otherwise deemed the prime contractor); the prime contractor's name is posted in a conspicuous place at the site, and the prime contractor sets up a system to ensure compliance with the Act, regulations and OHS Code and cooperation between employers and workers, and designates a person in writing for itOccupational Health and Safety Act, SA 2020, c. O-2.2, s. 10
  • The employer and supervisor protect a worker who may fall 3 metres or more, less than 3 metres where the injury could be worse than landing on a solid flat surface, into or onto a hazardous substance or object, or through an opening in a work surface (and more than 1.2 metres at a permanent work area); a guardrail is installed, or if not reasonably practicable a travel restraint system, then a personal fall arrest system, then equally effective controlsOccupational Health and Safety Code, s. 139
  • Where a worker may fall 3 metres or more and is not protected by guardrails, the employer has a fall protection plan that names the fall hazards, the fall protection system and anchors, confirmed clearance below, how the system is assembled, inspected, used and taken down, and the rescue procedure; it is at the work site, reviewed with workers before work with a risk of falling begins, and updated when conditions changeOccupational Health and Safety Code, s. 140
  • A worker is trained in the safe use of the fall protection system before working in an area where one must be usedOccupational Health and Safety Code, s. 141 (1)
  • Before a worker works in an excavation more than 1.5 metres deep and closer to the wall or bank than the excavation's depth, the worker is protected from cave-ins and sliding or rolling material by cutting back the walls, installing temporary protective structures, or both (not needed for a trench entirely in solid rock); where a worker enters a trench more than 1.5 metres deep, a safe way in and out is no more than 8 metres away and reachableOccupational Health and Safety Code, ss. 450, 455
  • Before ground is disturbed or existing concrete removed, the employer contacts the owner of any pipeline within 30 metres or other buried or concrete-embedded facility that may be affected, asks them to identify and mark it, does not start until the locations are marked, and makes sure workers know the locate marksOccupational Health and Safety Code, s. 447

Hazard assessment comes first

Before work begins, the employer assesses the site for existing and potential hazards and writes up the results and how each hazard is controlled, with the date. The assessment is repeated at reasonable intervals, when a work process is introduced or changes, and before significant additions or alterations. Affected workers take part, and hazards are eliminated where possible, otherwise controlled, with engineering controls first.

Every construction site with two or more employers has a prime contractor, designated in writing, whose name is posted where everyone can see it. The prime contractor sets up a system so the work follows the Act and the Code and employers and workers cooperate on safety. A site safety inspection checks that the hazard assessment is current for the work actually happening and that its controls are in place.

Fall protection from 3 metres

Workers are protected from falls of 3 metres or more, from lower falls where landing would be worse than on a solid flat surface, and from falls into hazardous substances or objects or through openings. A guardrail comes first; if it is not reasonably practicable, travel restraint, then personal fall arrest, then equally effective controls.

Wherever a worker may fall 3 metres or more without guardrails, a fall protection plan covers the hazards, the system and anchors, clearance below, inspection and rescue. It is kept at the site and reviewed with workers before the work starts, and workers are trained in the system first.

Excavations

Before anyone works in an excavation over 1.5 metres deep and closer to the wall than its depth, the walls are cut back or protected with a temporary protective structure. A trench over 1.5 metres has a safe way in and out within 8 metres. Before any ground disturbance, the owners of nearby pipelines and buried facilities are asked to mark them, and digging waits until they are marked.

Common mistakes

  • A hazard assessment written for last week's work, not today's.
  • No fall protection plan at the site for work 3 metres up without guardrails.
  • Using fall arrest where a guardrail or travel restraint was practicable.
  • Workers in a trench over 1.5 metres before the walls are cut back or shored.
  • Digging before the buried facility owners have marked their lines.
  • No prime contractor's name posted on a site with several employers.

Sources

Last reviewed October 12, 2026. Next review due January 12, 2027. This page explains published rules to help you write your report. It is not legal advice; the official text linked above governs.