U.S. to Limit Deadly Mining Dust as Black Lung Resurges
U.S. to Limit Deadly Mining Dust as Black Lung Resurges
Federal regulation capping toxic airborne silica has been decades in the making. The delay has cost miners dearly.
In case anyone is surprised:
We've got record breaking fossil fuel production in America, and while we're not burning it here what's happening is even worse.
We're using even more fossil fuels to ship all that heavy ass coal to China where they burn it.
So it's even worse than if we were burning it right outside the mine, and mining more coal despite not using it in America.
16% of our power in 2023 was produced by burning coal, here.
Progress stalled on the bill because no one in congress could pronounce or spell pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis, leading to tragic delays in introducing the bill.
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This is the best summary I could come up with:
Federal regulators on Tuesday will issue new protections for miners against a type of dust long known to cause deadly lung ailments — changes recommended by government researchers a half-century ago.
As progress on the rule stalled, government researchers documented with growing alarm a resurgence of severe black lung afflicting younger coal miners, and studies implicated poorly controlled silica as the likely cause.
“It should shock the conscience to know that there’s people in this country that do incredibly hard work that we all benefit from that are already disabled before they reach the age of 40,” said Chris Williamson, head of the Mine Safety and Health Administration, which is issuing the rule.
But their views on the rule, proposed last July, diverge sharply over enforcement, with mining trade groups arguing that the requirements are unnecessarily broad and costly, and miners’ advocates cautioning that companies are largely left to police themselves.
The dangers of breathing finely ground silica were evident almost a century ago, when hundreds of workers died of lung disease after drilling a tunnel through silica-rich rock near Gauley Bridge, W.Va.
Mr. Williamson said his agency protects miners who blow the whistle on unsafe conditions and works with the Justice Department to pursue criminal cases if they learn of sampling fraud.
The original article contains 988 words, the summary contains 213 words. Saved 78%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!
They’ve been working on a safety rule limiting silica dust since 1996? The mind boggles
Workers can be replaced. Profits can't.
What do you been we don't burn it here? 16% of our power in 2023 was produced by burning coal.