EKB News

The federal mine safety agency on Friday published a final rule requiring mine operators to have more emergency breathing devices, better evacuation training and a quicker response during accidents. The rules were finalized after the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration held a series of public hearings on a set of temporary, yet stringent, mine safety regulations. The government adopted the temporary rules after January accidents at the Sago Mine killed 12 and the Aracoma Alma No. 1 Mine killed two in West Virginia. As the temporary rules were vetted this year, the federal MINER Act was signed into law, encompassing many of the same regulations found in MSHA's final standard. The law, backed by both the coal industry and United Mine Workers, also directed MSHA to require that new underground tracking and communication be in place within three years and revise fines for mine safety civil penalties.