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Margo Lopez, shareholder of the Washington, D.C., office at Ogletree Deakins, is a regular contributor to Pit & Quarry whose practice is concentrated in safety and health law and litigation. [...]

Warrior Coal, a subsidiary of Alliance Resource Partners, operates the Cardinal mine, located near Madisonville in Hopkins County, Kentucky. A classic room-and-pillar operation, Warrior produces approximately 3.6 million tons per [...]

In a mine emergency, chaos can lead to tragedy. To take charge in an emergency, by law (30 CFR 75.1501), coal mines must designate an on-site 'responsible person' (RP). The [...]

Any momentum gained as the coal industry left 2014 behind with a record low of fatalities was lost as 2015 began and four fatalities were recorded in a period of [...]

American Electric Power (AEP) recently conducted a survey as part of its overall dedication to corporate sustainability, which also included the performance of its supply chain. The largest U.S. coal [...]

Wehear from operators and miners all the time that 'MSHA never changes.' Usually, that type of comment is based in frustration and focused on an inconsistent citation, an unusual interpretation [...]

While most underground accidents are avoidable, proximity detection represents a significant technological leap forward in accident prevention. West Virginia recently made proximity detection a priority (See News, p. 8) and [...]

Pinch-point guarding for return rolls is currently at a level of importance never before seen in the industry. Although the Mine Safety & Health Administration's Guide to Equipment Guarding and [...]

In a 2-1 decision in January, the Federal Mine Safety & Health Review Commission shed additional light on what is and is not a flagrant violation. In Northshore Mining, the [...]

The details of the new emergency temporary standards enforced by the Mine Safety and Health Administration are presented.

On Oct. 9, 2019, the White House issued Executive Order No. 13891, titled 'Promoting the Rule of Law through Improved Agency Guidance Documents.' The focus of the executive order was [...]

Coal mining is an essential industry, so miners are working during this global pandemic. Weeks ago, the mining industry identified and then implemented a wide range of measures to protect [...]

A review of of the conflicts between safety costs and efficient mangement of small mines is presented. Lack of training and lack of commitment are often cited as the the reasons small mines may be less safe.

A new law that will eliminate part 48 of Title 30 of the Code of Federal Regulations has been approved by Congress and will take effect on Sep 1999. Part 48, which prevents the Mine Safety and Health Administration from using appropriated funds to enforce training requirements at surface nonmetal mines, will be replaced by part 46, which contains more flexible training regulations. Part 46 will also allow MSHA to demand safety records from mine operators and ask them about safety procedures.

In March, the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration's (MSHA) proximity detection rule became fully effective. It requires underground coal operators to equip place-changing continuous mining machines with proximity detection [...]

The Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA) is no longer seeking to reform the system by which civil penalties are assessed against mining operations, the National Stone, Sand & Gravel [...]

Workplace exams. The crystalline silica rule. Diesel exhaust monitoring. These are among the regulatory areas the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association (NSSGA) is monitoring as the executive branch of [...]

The Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA) announced a proposed regulation to amend workplace examination requirements. The regulation, titled 'Examinations of Working Places in Metal and Nonmetal Mines,' proposes expanded [...]

For the mining industry's safety and health community, the past year certainly has been one of the more interesting periods in recent times. In most years, the major regulatory issues […]

Almost two years after the tragic explosion at the Upper Big Branch (UBB) mine explosion, West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomblin signed new comprehensive legislation that will continue to improve [...]

The liability of a mine operator for violations of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Tact of 1977 that are committed by independent contractors performing services or construction at the […]

Industrial mineral producers are showing concern over possibly stricter regulations on crystalline silica. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has already ruled a 0.1 mg/m3 exposure limit for respirable crystalline silica while the Mine Safety and Health Administration has recommended the labeling of products containing respirable silica. The present and future regulations will affect the sale of many mineral commodities since crystalline silica occurs in quite a number of industrial minerals.

Without a doubt, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) is an enforcement agency. It walks, talks, thinks and acts like an enforcement agency. It sees itself as an enforcement [...]

Acommon complaint we hear about Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA) enforcement is that the agency keeps changing the meaning of its regulations without submitting the matter to notice and [...]

The current system of mine safety and health regulation is at a crossroads. More than 40 years after the passage of the Mine Act, the mining industry has changed significantly, [...]

Those of us who have been involved in the industry over relatively long periods (in my case, a mere 48 years) are familiar with the ups and downs of mining. [...]

When medical marijuana first started to become legal, mine operators responded in a similar way. Most mines continue to have a zero-tolerance policy for both applicants and current employees for [...]

A number of things can be said about MSHA penalties and the effects that penalty assessment procedures have on mine operators. Penalties are part of a company's reputation. If an [...]

MSHA conducted its first hearing on proposed changes to civil penalty regulations on Dec. 4. MSHA wants to decrease operator challenges to penalties and limit operator opportunities to have penalties [...]

MSHA is under pressure to audit mine operator reports of accidents, injuries and illnesses. The inspector general of the U.S. Department of Labor issued a report in March that notes [...]