Mine Safety

NIOSH’s Office of Mine Safety and Health Research ”is soliciting proposals to conduct research, exploratory development, testing, or evaluations of new technologies to improve mine safety, or to adapt technologies from other industries for application in mining environments that could result in improved safety for mineworkers.”

Examples provided by NIOSH of the type of activities they are considering funding include development of “a next generation self-contained self-rescuer (SCSR) to facilitate voice communication while the device is worn” and “development of technologies or strategies for collecting coal/rock dust samples from underground coal mines or for improving existing approaches for sample collection.”

MSHA is continuing their Rules to Live By initiative with Rules to Live By II — Preventing Catastrophic Accidents.  The second phase of the Rules to Live By campaign “focuses on standards which were cited during major disasters over the last 10 years, and which contributed to 5 or more fatalities.”

MSHA has developed online “refresher” training courses for Rules to Live By I and Rules to Live By II.   Each  training session can be completed in about 1 hour.

Below are the links to MSHA’s  Rule to Live By I & II

Rules to Live By I Online Refresher Training

Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health Joe Main emphasized the role of enforcement in improving mine safety.  In a message reflecting on 2010 mining fatalities, Main said that “MSHA will vigorously enforce the Mine Act, and look for ways to improve our policies and regulations to prevent these unnecessary deaths and provide miners the opportunity to return home safe at the end of every shift.”

The Assistant Secretary stated that “MSHA engaged in a number of targeted enforcement, awareness, outreach and rulemaking activities in 2010 to reduce the number of mining fatalities, accidents and illnesses” including: