Mine safety

Last updated

Mine safety is a broad term referring to the practice of controlling and managing a wide range of hazards associated with the life cycle of mining-related activities. Mine safety practice involves the implementation of recognised hazard controls and/or reduction of risks associated with mining activities to legally, socially and morally acceptable levels. While the fundamental principle of mine safety is to remove health and safety risks to mine workers, mining safety practice may also focus on the reduction of risks to plant (machinery) together with the structure and orebody of the mine. [1]

Contents

Le Petit Journal illustration of the Courrieres mine disaster Courrieres 1906 LeJ.jpg
Le Petit Journal illustration of the Courrières mine disaster
Firefighter training in fell slate mine, Germany
Remnants of pit "San Vicente" in Linares, Jaen, Spain. On its last day of operation, in 1967, six workers died in an elevator accident. IAPH Pozo San Vicente.jpg
Remnants of pit "San Vicente" in Linares, Jaén, Spain. On its last day of operation, in 1967, six workers died in an elevator accident.

Safety has long been a concern in the mining business, especially in underground mining. The Courrières mine disaster, Europe's worst mining accident, involved the death of 1,099 miners in Northern France on March 10, 1906. This disaster was surpassed only by the Benxihu Colliery accident in China on April 26, 1942, which killed 1,549 miners. [3] While mining today is substantially safer than it was in previous decades, mining accidents still occur. Government figures from China indicate that 5,000 Chinese miners die in accidents each year, while other reports have suggested a figure as high as 20,000. [4] Mining accidents continue worldwide, including accidents causing dozens of fatalities at a time such as the 2007 Ulyanovskaya Mine disaster in Russia, the 2009 Heilongjiang mine explosion in China, and the 2010 Upper Big Branch Mine disaster in the United States.

Hazards and prevention

Ventilation

Mining ventilation is a significant safety concern for many miners. Poor ventilation inside sub-surface mines causes exposure to harmful gases, heat, and dust, which can cause illness, injury, and death. The concentration of methane and other airborne contaminants underground can generally be controlled by dilution (ventilation), capture before entering the host air stream (methane drainage), or isolation (seals and stoppings). [5] A ventilation system is set up to force a stream of air through the working areas of the mine. The air circulation necessary for effective ventilation of a mine is generated by one or more large mine fans, usually located above ground. Air flows in one direction only, making circuits through the mine such that each main work area constantly receives a supply of fresh air. Watering down in coal mines also helps to keep dust levels down: by spraying the machine with water and filtering the dust-laden water with a scrubber fan, miners can successfully trap the dust. [5]

Gases in mines can poison the workers or displace the oxygen in the mine, causing asphyxiation. [5] For this reason, the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration requires that groups of miners in the United States carry gas detection equipment that can detect common gases, such as CO, O2, H2S, CH4, as well as calculate % Lower Explosive Limit. Regulation requires that all production stop if there is a concentration of 1.4% of flammable gas present. Additionally, further regulation is being requested for more gas detection as newer technology such as nanotechnology is introduced.

Gas ignition

Ignited methane gas is a common source of explosions in coal mines, which in turn can initiate more extensive coal dust explosions. For this reason, rock dusts such as limestone dust are spread throughout coal mines to diminish the chances of coal dust explosions as well as to limit the extent of potential explosions, in a process known as rock dusting. Coal dust explosions can also begin independently of methane gas explosions. Frictional heat and sparks generated by mining equipment can ignite both methane gas and coal dust. For this reason, water is often used to cool rock-cutting sites. [6]

Noise

Miners utilize equipment strong enough to break through extremely hard layers of the Earth's crust. This equipment, combined with the closed work space in which underground miners work, can cause hearing loss. [7] For example, a roof bolter (commonly used by mine roof bolter operators) can reach sound power levels of up to 115 dB. [7] Combined with the reverberant effects of underground mines, a miner without proper hearing protection is at a high risk for hearing loss. [7] By age 50, nearly 90% of U.S. coal miners have some hearing loss, compared to only 10% among workers not exposed to loud noises. [8] Roof bolters are among the loudest machines, but auger miners, bulldozers, continuous mining machines, front end loaders, and shuttle cars and trucks are also among those machines most responsible for excessive noise in mine work. [8]

The preferred prevention strategy involves engineering controls to eliminate noise sources. Administrative controls and hearing protection can also be used when engineering controls are not feasible. [9]

Cave-ins and rock falls

A video on preventing rock falls in mines

Since mining entails removing dirt and rock from its natural location, thereby creating large empty pits, rooms, and tunnels, cave-ins as well as ground and rock falls are a major concern within mines. Modern techniques for timbering and bracing walls and ceilings within sub-surface mines have reduced the number of fatalities due to cave-ins, but ground falls continue to represent up to 50% of mining fatalities. [10] Even in cases where mine collapses are not instantly fatal, they can trap mine workers deep underground. Cases such as these often lead to high-profile rescue efforts, such as when 33 Chilean miners were trapped deep underground for 69 days in 2010.

Heat exposure

High temperatures and humidity may result in heat-related illnesses, including heat stroke, which can be fatal. The presence of heavy equipment in confined spaces also poses a risk to miners. To improve the safety of mine workers, modern mines use automation and remote operation including, for example, such equipment as automated loaders and remotely operated rockbreakers. However, despite modern improvements to safety practices, mining remains a dangerous occupation throughout the world.

Use of explosives

A video on handling explosives in underground mines

Explosives are used in mines for constructive purposes, but can be hazardous if proper safety measures are not taken. For example, flyrock can be ejected beyond the blast site, causing personal injuries and damage to property.

Dust exposure

In coal mining, the extraction, crushing, and transport of coal can generate significant amounts of airborne respirable (extremely fine) coal dust. Dust less than 10 microns in size cannot be seen with the eye. In non-coal mining, stone, and sand and gravel mining operations and for particular occupations in coal mines, the respirable silica dust created during mining is the primary concern. [11] Respirable dust can cause long-term lung problems. Respirable coal dust can cause coal workers' pneumoconiosis (also known as miners lung or black lung disease), respirable silica dust can cause silicosis, lung cancer, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Elongate mineral particles can lead to asbestosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma. [12]

Abandoned mines

Warning sign near a dangerous area filled with open mineshafts, Calico Ghost Town, California. CalicoGhostTownwarningsign.JPG
Warning sign near a dangerous area filled with open mineshafts, Calico Ghost Town, California.

There are upwards of 560,000 abandoned mines on public and privately owned lands in the United States alone. [13] [14] Abandoned mines may be dangerous to anyone who attempts to explore them without proper knowledge and safety training.

Regulations

In the United States, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) develops and enforces regulations to ensure mining safety. [15] Additionally, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) researches occupational health issues related to mining, which is a priority industry sector in the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA). [16] [17] Several organizations impose self-assessments in efforts to ensure the safety of individual workers in compliance with these regulations; [18] the Neil George Safety System was among the first of these programs established in the mining industry. [19]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coal mining</span> Process of getting coal out of the ground

Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United Kingdom and South Africa, a coal mine and its structures are a colliery, a coal mine is called a "pit", and above-ground mining structures are referred to as a "pit head". In Australia, "colliery" generally refers to an underground coal mine.

Coal dust is a fine-powdered form of coal which is created by the crushing, grinding, or pulverization of coal rock. Because of the brittle nature of coal, coal dust can be created by mining, transporting, or mechanically handling it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Silicosis</span> Pneumoconiosis caused by inhalation of silica, quartz or slate particles

Silicosis is a form of occupational lung disease caused by inhalation of crystalline silica dust. It is marked by inflammation and scarring in the form of nodular lesions in the upper lobes of the lungs. It is a type of pneumoconiosis. Silicosis, particularly the acute form, is characterized by shortness of breath, cough, fever, and cyanosis. It may often be misdiagnosed as pulmonary edema, pneumonia, or tuberculosis. Using workplace controls, silicosis is almost always a preventable disease.

A mining accident is an accident that occurs during the process of mining minerals or metals. Thousands of miners die from mining accidents each year, especially from underground coal mining, although accidents also occur in hard rock mining. Coal mining is considered much more hazardous than hard rock mining due to flat-lying rock strata, generally incompetent rock, the presence of methane gas, and coal dust. Most of the deaths these days occur in developing countries, and rural parts of developed countries where safety measures are not practiced as fully. A mining disaster is an incident where there are five or more fatalities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mine Safety and Health Administration</span>

The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) is a large agency of the United States Department of Labor which administers the provisions of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 to enforce compliance with mandatory safety and health standards as a means to eliminate fatal accidents, to reduce the frequency and severity of nonfatal accidents, to minimize health hazards, and to promote improved safety and health conditions in the nation's mines. MSHA carries out the mandates of the Mine Act at all mining and mineral processing operations in the United States, regardless of size, number of employees, commodity mined, or method of extraction. David Zatezalo was sworn in as Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health, and head of MSHA, on November 30, 2017. He served until January 20, 2021. Jeannette Galanais served as Acting Assistant Secretary by President Joe Biden on February 1, 2021 until Christopher Williamson took office on April 11, 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black lung disease</span> Human disease caused by long-term exposure to coal dust

Black lung disease (BLD), also known as coal-mine dust lung disease, or simply black lung, is an occupational type of pneumoconiosis caused by long-term inhalation and deposition of coal dust in the lungs and the consequent lung tissue's reaction to its presence. It is common in coal miners and others who work with coal. It is similar to both silicosis from inhaling silica dust and asbestosis from inhaling asbestos dust. Inhaled coal dust progressively builds up in the lungs and leads to inflammation, fibrosis, and in worse cases, necrosis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monongah mining disaster</span> 1907 coal mine explosion

The Monongah mining disaster was a coal mine explosion on December 6, 1907, at Fairmont Coal Company's Nos. 6 and 8 mines in Monongah, West Virginia, which killed 362 miners. It has been described as "the worst mining disaster in American history" and was one of the contributing events that led to the creation of the United States Bureau of Mines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sago Mine disaster</span> 2006 coal mine explosion

The Sago Mine disaster was a coal mine explosion on January 2, 2006, at the Sago Mine in Sago, West Virginia, United States, near the Upshur County seat of Buckhannon. The blast and collapse trapped 13 miners for nearly two days; only one survived. It was the worst mining disaster in the United States since the Jim Walter Resources Mine disaster in Alabama on September 23, 2001, and the worst disaster in West Virginia since the 1968 Farmington Mine disaster. It was exceeded four years later by the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster, also a coal mine explosion in West Virginia, which killed 29 miners in April 2010.

Safety and Health in Mines Convention, 1995 is an International Labour Organization Convention. It was adopted at the 82nd International Labour Conference (ILC) of the International Labour Organization (ILO). The ILO is an agency under the United Nations that deals with international labor issues while promoting workers rights and opportunities. One of ILO's goals is to hold annual labor conventions to create legally binding contracts for participating nations to ratify. During the Safety and Health in Mines Convention (C176), it was recognized that there are inherent hazards in the mining workplace, and a need for a convention was mandatory.

The Darby Mine No. 1 disaster in Harlan County, Kentucky, USA, on May 20, 2006, killed five miners and left one survivor.

An asphyxiant gas, also known as a simple asphyxiant, is a nontoxic or minimally toxic gas which reduces or displaces the normal oxygen concentration in breathing air. Breathing of oxygen-depleted air can lead to death by asphyxiation (suffocation). Because asphyxiant gases are relatively inert and odorless, their presence in high concentration may not be noticed, except in the case of carbon dioxide (hypercapnia).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Health and environmental impact of the coal industry</span>

The health and environmental impact of the coal industry includes issues such as land use, waste management, water and air pollution, caused by the coal mining, processing and the use of its products. In addition to atmospheric pollution, coal burning produces hundreds of millions of tons of solid waste products annually, including fly ash, bottom ash, and flue-gas desulfurization sludge, that contain mercury, uranium, thorium, arsenic, and other heavy metals. Coal is the largest contributor to the human-made increase of carbon dioxide in Earth's atmosphere.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Upper Big Branch Mine disaster</span> 2010 coal mine explosion

The Upper Big Branch Mine disaster occurred on April 5, 2010 roughly 1,000 feet (300 m) underground in Raleigh County, West Virginia at Massey Energy's Upper Big Branch coal mine located in Montcoal. Twenty-nine out of thirty-one miners at the site were killed. The coal dust explosion occurred at 3:27 pm. The accident was the worst in the United States since 1970, when 38 miners were killed at Finley Coal Company's No. 15 and 16 mines in Hyden, Kentucky. A state funded independent investigation later found Massey Energy directly responsible for the blast.

The Harwick Mine disaster was a mining accident on January 25, 1904 in Cheswick, Pennsylvania, some sixteen mi (26 km) north of Pittsburgh in the western part of the state. The blast killed an estimated 179 miners and 2 aid workers. The disaster ranks among the ten worst coal mining disasters in American history. One community especially impacted was the Hungarian community in Homestead, Pennsylvania. Fifty-eight of the members of the First Hungarian Reformed Church of Homestead—a full third of the congregation—died in the explosion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federal Coal Mine Safety Act of 1952</span> US law

The Federal Coal Mine Safety Act of 1952 is a U.S. law authorizing the federal government to conduct annual inspections of underground coal mines with more than 15 workers, and gave the United States Bureau of Mines the authority to shut down a mine in cases of "imminent danger." The Act authorized the assessment of civil penalties against mine operators for failing to comply with an order to shut down or for refusing to give inspectors access to mine property. The law did not authorize monetary penalties for noncompliance with the safety provisions. In 1966, Congress extended coverage to all underground coal mines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Occupational dust exposure</span> Occupational hazard in agriculture, construction, forestry, and mining

Occupational dust exposure occurs when small particles are generated at the workplace through the disturbance/agitation of rock/mineral, dry grain, timber, fiber, or other material. When these small particles become suspended in the air, they can pose a risk to the health of those who breath in the contaminated air.

A tapered element oscillating microbalance (TEOM) is an instrument used for real-time detection of aerosol particles by measuring their mass concentration. It makes use of a small vibrating glass tube whose oscillation frequency changes when aerosol particles are deposited on it increasing its inertia. TEOM-based devices have been approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for environmental air quality monitoring, and by the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration for monitoring coal dust exposure for miners to prevent several respiratory diseases.

J. Davitt McAteer is an American lawyer, author, and activist from Fairmont, West Virginia. McAteer was appointed to the position of assistant secretary for the Mine Safety and Health Administration from 1993 to 2000 under President Bill Clinton. Throughout his career, McAteer has been an advocate for safe working conditions for miners, particularly in the coal industry. After the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster of 2010, where an explosion caused by negligence led to the death of 29 miners, McAteer Served on Governor Earl Ray Tomblin's independent investigation panel to determine the cause of the explosion. McAteer is the author of "Monongah: The Tragic Story of the 1907 Monongah Mine Disaster".

The Hlobane Coal Mine Disaster occurred at the Hlobane Colliery, Natal on 12 September 1983. The mine was the scene of another mining disaster 39 years earlier, an event that occurred on same date. A methane explosion in the mine caused burns and poisonous gas that killed 68 miners.

The 1923 Bellbird Mining Disaster took place on 1 September 1923 when there was a fire at Hetton-Bellbird coal mine, known locally as the Bellbird Colliery or mine. The coal mine was located near the village of Bellbird, which is itself three miles southwest of Cessnock in the Northern coalfields of New South Wales, Australia. The accident occurred in the No. 1 Workings of the mine and resulted in the deaths of 21 miners and their horses. At the time of the disaster the mine employed 538 people including 369 who worked underground.

References

  1. ↑ Ninness, John (2019-05-08). "What is mining safety?". Australasian Mine Safety Journal. Retrieved 2019-07-09.
  2. ↑ Mañas Mármol, Francisco (31 July 2011). "San Vicente: Un pozo de leyenda". Linares28.es. Archived from the original on 9 June 2015. Retrieved 28 May 2013.
  3. ↑ Stephen J. Spignesi (2004). Catastrophe!: The 100 Greatest Disasters Of All Time. p. 168. ISBN   9780806525587.
  4. ↑ "Where The Coal Is Stained With Blood". TIME. March 2, 2007
  5. 1 2 3 "NIOSH Mining Safety and Health Ventilation". United States National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Retrieved 2007-10-29.
  6. ↑ NIOSH, Coal Mine Explosion Prevention Archived July 4, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  7. 1 2 3 Peterson, J.S.; P.G. Kovalchik; R.J. Matetic (2006). "Sound power level study of a roof bolter" (PDF). Trans Soc Min Metal Explor (320): 171–7. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 15, 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-16.
  8. 1 2 "NIOSH Engineering Controls Research Shows Promise in Reducing Noise Exposure Among Mine Workers". NIOSH. 2010. doi: 10.26616/NIOSHPUB2010156 . Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  9. ↑ "Hearing Loss Prevention Overview". www.cdc.gov. Retrieved 2017-02-13.
  10. ↑ NIOSH Ground Control Program Archived May 17, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  11. ↑ "Respirable Dust". www.cdc.gov. Retrieved 2017-01-24.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  12. ↑ "CDC - NIOSH Publications and Products - Current Intelligence Bulletin 62: Asbestos Fibers and Other Elongate Meneral Particles: State of the Science and Roadmap for Research". www.cdc.gov. 2011. doi: 10.26616/NIOSHPUB2011159 . Retrieved 2017-02-13.
  13. ↑ Kertes, N., (March, 1996). US abandoned mine count still a mystery - General Accounting Office report. American Metal Market, Retrieved August 27, 2007, [6]
  14. ↑ People, Land, and Water (March, 2007). KEEP OUT! Old Mines Are Dangerous. Office of Surface Mining: U.S. Department of the Interior. Retrieved Aug, 27, 2007. Archived 2009-12-05 at the Wayback Machine
  15. ↑ "Mission | Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA)". www.msha.gov. Retrieved 2016-07-25.
  16. ↑ "About the NIOSH Mining Program". www.cdc.gov. 2 December 2019. Retrieved 2022-02-14.
  17. ↑ "NORA Mining Sector Council | NIOSH | CDC". www.cdc.gov. 2017-10-24. Retrieved 2018-02-22.
  18. ↑ Havinga, Jop; Shire, Mohammed Ibrahim; Rae, Andrew (8 April 2022). "Should We Cut the Cards? Assessing the Influence of "Take 5" Pre-Task Risk Assessments on Safety" (PDF). Safety. 8 (27). doi: 10.3390/safety8020027 .
  19. ↑ "Five Simple Steps to Safety". Canadian Mining Journal. 1 October 2004. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.