Niagara's construction industry is working through a wave of new provincial safety rules that took effect at the start of 2026, from mandatory defibrillators on longer projects to documented washroom cleaning, according to the Niagara Construction Association's Health & Safety newsletter.
The change with the biggest practical impact for local job sites involves defibrillators. An amendment to the Construction Projects Regulation under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, in force as of Jan. 1, 2026, requires any construction project lasting more than three months to have an automated external defibrillator installed and maintained on site.
The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board is offering some relief to employers. Qualifying Ontario projects can receive up to $2,500 toward an AED through a new reimbursement program.
Washroom records and Fire Code changes
Two other rules also took effect on Jan. 1, 2026. Ontario Regulation 480/24 requires workplace washrooms to be cleaned regularly, with records of that cleaning kept accessible to workers.
The updated Ontario Fire Code — Part 4, which covers flammable and combustible liquids — now applies to sites that store, handle, dispense or process more than 500 litres in total, or more than 250 litres of Class I liquids such as gasoline, solvents or ethanol, in a fire compartment. The newsletter describes the update as the province's first full harmonization with the 2020 National Fire Code in more than two decades.
Health hazards and cold-weather heart strain
On the occupational health side, the Infrastructure Health and Safety Association has released a new guide, Preventing Exposures to Occupational Health Hazards (M077), to help employers comply with laws protecting workers from harmful exposure levels. It covers the assessment and control of designated substances, air quality testing and the use of personal protective equipment. The newsletter notes that exposure to biological or chemical agents on jobsites can lead to serious injuries and illnesses, and that assessing those hazards is mandatory.
With February marked as Heart Health Month, the newsletter also flags the added strain winter places on workers' hearts. Cold temperatures cause blood vessels to tighten and blood pressure to rise, while strenuous activity such as snow shovelling or heavy lifting in the cold raises heart rate and cardiovascular workload. It urges crews to pace hard tasks, warm up properly and take frequent breaks.
It also stresses the difference between a heart attack — blocked blood flow to the heart, with signs such as chest discomfort, shortness of breath, nausea and pain in the arms, jaw or back — and cardiac arrest, in which the heart suddenly stops and the person collapses. A suspected heart attack calls for dialing 9-1-1 and keeping the person at rest; someone who is unresponsive and not breathing normally needs immediate CPR and an AED.
For the drive to and from site, the newsletter points to Transport Canada advice on winter tires, being well rested before driving and always wearing a seatbelt, along with an IHSA video playlist on safe winter driving.
Complacency and committee feedback
The newsletter also highlights an article by Scott Halling, CRSP, arguing that incidents involving experienced workers are often blamed on "complacency" when the real cause is habituation — the brain's automatic filtering of familiar stimuli, which creates safety blind spots below conscious awareness. Halling contends this is a predictable human factor that calls for system-level fixes to how work, inspections and investigations are designed, rather than treating it as a personal failing.
The association's Safety Committee is meanwhile surveying members on what training topics they would like offered, and is collecting ideas for Membership Appreciation Day presentation topics, saying member feedback helps shape training and events.
