WV BOARD OF COAL MINE HEALTH & SAFETY MOVES FORWARD ON PROXIMITY DETECTION

For clients and friends of Jackson Kelly PLLC

Volume 10, Number 1

©2014 Jackson Kelly PLLC

 

        The West Virginia Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety passed a draft proposal adding additional requirements for safety measures in underground coal mines at their meeting on January 16, 2014. The draft proposal includes requirements for proximity detection systems, cameras on section equipment, expanded rules related to powered haulage accidents, and requirements for strobe lights and reflective clothing.

 

        The proposed rule includes requirements for the following:

• Proximity detection systems on all “newly purchased” place-change continuous miners within six months following the effective date of the rule, all rebuilt place-change continuous miners within 12 months, and on all existing place-change continuous miners within 36 months;
• Cameras or proximity detection systems on scoop cars and battery-powered section haulage equipment within 36 months;
• A minimum of 100 square inches of reflective or highly visible clothing to be worn by all underground employees;
• The use of strobes lights at hazardous work sites; and
• The West Virginia Office of Miners’ Health, Safety and Training Director to be responsible for seeking expeditious approval of extended-cut mining plans with MSHA in order to reduce instances of unnecessary equipment moves underground.

         The final proposal should be posted for public comment by the end of the month, and will be subject to a 30-day public comment period, prior to the board moving forward to implement state new regulations. MSHA has previously proposed a rule to require proximity devices on mobile equipment in underground mines, but it has been stalled at the Office of Management and Budget since September 2011. Another proposal by MSHA to require the devices on continuous miners is expected in May 2014 to strengthen protection of miners by reducing the potential of pinning, crushing or striking hazards associated with working close to mobile equipment. The proposals of the WV Board may give a hint of where MSHA may go with the federal regulations.

 

        This article was authored by Dana M. Svendsen, Jackson Kelly PLLC.  For more information on the author, click here.

 

SAFETY AND HEALTH PRACTICE GROUP

Denver, Colorado

 

Responsible Attorney

Kristin R.B. White

(303) 390-0006

kwhite@jacksonkelly.com

 

For more information, contact:

 

Laura E. Beverage (303) 390-0003	Karen L. Johnston (303) 390-0008
R. Henry Moore (412) 434-8801	Michael T. Cimino (304) 340-1000

 

The Jackson Kelly PLLC Occupational Safety and Health News Alert is for informational purposes only and not for the purposes of offering legal advice or a legal opinion on any matter. No reader should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any statement in the Jackson Kelly PLLC Occupational Safety and Health News Alert without seeking advice from qualified legal counsel on the particular facts and circumstances involved.

 

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KRISTIN R.B. WHITE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONTENTS OF THIS ALERT.