BLACK LUNG HIGH ON MAIN’S AGENDA

In his first meeting with reporters since taking the top job at the Mine Safety and Health Administration in October, Joseph Main outlined several priority safety issues getting his attention.

Main said the agency intends to propose new rules shortly that will target reducing miners’ exposure to respirable coal mine dust – the source of dreaded black lung disease. Proposals likely will mandate miners’ use of new wearable personal dust monitors that measure exposure to coal dust in real-time instead of devices in use today that only record dust levels for later analysis, Main said Nov. 20 in a conference call with reporters.

The new monitors, which Main said he has sampled, will give miners and operators immediate feedback when dust concentrations are unacceptably high. The agency is receiving comment from stakeholders on the devices through a request for information published Oct. 14. Comments are due by Dec.14.

MSHA and NIOSH have been working intensively on certifying new dust monitors since 2006 as per the landmark Mine Improvement And New Emergency Response Act (MINER Act) that year, and MSHA held a public hearing July 8 at its headquarters in Arlington, VA. NIOSH has estimated that more than 10,000 miners have died of black lung -- clinically called pneumoconiosis – over the past decade. The disease, which causes scarring of the lungs and premature death, had decreased dramatically in the United States from 1969 to 1995, but prevalence of black lung cases has more than doubled in recent years, notably among younger underground miners, according to experts.

Looking at other priorities, Main, who served as administrator of United Mine Workers of America’s Occupational Safety and Health Department for 22 years starting in 1982, told reporters MSHA also would step up protocols for mine emergency preparedness, lamenting confusion that has occurred in recent years during disasters. The MINER Act called for enhanced mine emergency response standards.

Main said workforce training and addressing hazards of deep mines in the West also merit his attention.

Main said the industry is in transition as the population of miners has decreased dramatically over about three decades. New miners are coming into the industry amid retirements with scant experience, and these workers need additional training, he said.

On deep mines, such as in Utah where the 2007 Crandall Canyon disaster killed six miners and three rescuers, Main said MSHA will look harder at issues involved with deep mining and make some determinations on safety. Officials have said the weight of the mountain above the Crandall Canyon mine placed too much force on its tunnel structure.

More: MSHA coal dust monitor Request for Information, NIOSH Science Blog on black lung

Photo: Dust Monitor, CDC