On April 16, 2024, the Mine Safety & Health Administration (“MSHA”) released its final rule for Respirable Crystalline Silica (“RCS”) for preliminary viewing, and it was published in the Federal Register on April 18, 2024....more
On December 20, 2023, and more than two years after announcing a proposed rule, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) issued its much-anticipated final rule regarding safety plans for powered haulage. The rule...more
While the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) continues to work on developing a new crystalline silica standard (that is expected to cut the exposure limit in half), the agency has decided to ramp up enforcement of...more
MSHA has announced a new campaign focusing on mine operators’ obligations to ensure that miners are fully trained and able to take time to follow best safety practices. To that end, MSHA is providing resources on powered...more
On April 1, 2021, as part of an ongoing review and revision process, seven amendments to the Health, Safety and Reclamation Code for Mines in British Columbia came into force. The Code, and its enabling statute, the Mines...more
On January 21, 2021, President Joseph R. Biden Jr. signed an executive order directing the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to take certain actions to address worker safety and health with regard to...more
As the country begins to reopen, many mine operators are contemplating next steps for their own operations. One certainty is that the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) will continue to enforce the provisions of the...more
China Resumes LNG Imports from the U.S. - "Chinese buyers have resumed imports of liquefied natural gas from U.S. exporters, as Beijing started granting waivers to a 25% import tariff." Why this is important: In the...more
The federal agency overseeing mine safety and health has been undergoing a bit of a transformation over the past several years, and employers can expect to see the most significant change in a matter of weeks. The Mine Safety...more
The global mining & metals sector is facing one of its most challenging transitions yet, as the industry is considering how it can best position itself to regain and maintain stakeholder confidence on ESG matters. Miners...more
FBI Eyes How Pennsylvania Approved Pipeline - "The FBI has begun a corruption investigation into how Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration came to issue permits for construction on a multibillion-dollar pipeline project to carry...more
On Thursday, November 7, 2019, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (“MSHA”) held the second of five stakeholder meetings to discuss the implementation of the revised Workplace Examination standard for metal/non-metal...more
At the end of July, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (“MSHA”) announced the issuance of a Program Policy Letter (“PPL”) to provide mine operators guidance regarding the existing requirement to provide escape ways or...more
A Turning Point for U.S. Power Generation - "For the first time in U.S. history, renewable energies briefly generated more electricity than coal in April this year, according to the Institute for Energy Economics and...more
The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) held its quarterly stakeholder call on May 2, 2019. MSHA began the discussion by reviewing the five fatalities that occurred in the first quarter of 2019. The agency then...more
On January 24, 2019, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) held its first Quarterly Stakeholder Call of the year. As with previous calls, the agency emphasized its efforts to support its powered haulage safety...more
On April 10, 2010, Massey Energy’s Upper Big Branch underground coal mine suffered an explosion, resulting in the death of 29 miners. The investigation determined that inadequate ventilation caused a buildup of toxic gases,...more
Last month, the New York Times reported on the identification of the largest cluster of advanced black lung cases ever reported. (And lest you think that this is fake news, the Times contains a link to the article, which was...more
Everyone from political junkies to average citizens has an opinion on the January 2018 government shutdown, and some may have bets on its duration. However, while the government continues to flounder, the private sector...more
The Mine Safety and Health Administration said that it is re-launching its annual Preventive Roof/Rib Outreach Program (PROP) to expand awareness among coal miners and mine operators of roof and rib fall hazards. The...more
Recent coal-mining deaths have prompted the Mine Safety and Health Administration to launch a voluntary “training assistance initiative” for miners with less than one year of experience in mining or in their current job, MSHA...more
Most, if not all, operators have at one time or another received a 104(A) citation from MSHA. While operators may be aware the basic orders MSHA can issue, such as unwarrantable failures, there are numerous, lesser known...more
MSHA’s published enforcement initiatives and Fatalgrams are an easy place to start when improving mine safety and proactively preparing sites for inspection, especially if you do your research. Reviewing MSHA’s most-cited...more
The Mine Safety and Health Administration has issued a safety alert advising employers to take precautions when storing, handling, transporting, and using explosives and detonators in underground coal mines near energized...more
The Mine Safety and Health Administration will award up to $1 million in new grants for education and training programs to help identify, avoid, and prevent unsafe working conditions at mines in the United States as part of a...more