Massey Energy Steps up Pressure on MSHA to Reverse Practice of Turning Off Air Scrubbers
Scrubber Devices Remove Up to 98% of Harmful Dust
RICHMOND, Va., May 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Massey Energy Company's (NYSE: MEE) Chairman and CEO Don Blankenship released the following statement in response to news reports that MSHA has agreed to discuss a reversal of their practice requiring the coal industry to turn off dust scrubbers on continuous mining machines.
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"On May 5th I sent a letter to Joe Main, the Assistant Secretary for Mine Safety & Health ("MSHA") urging him to reverse his agency's practice of turning off dust scrubbers on continuous mining machines, based on a recent study by National Institute of Safety and Health ("NIOSH") that concluded miners could be exposed to up to 12 times the level of respirable dust in a section in which the scrubber is not operating.
"According to a recent news article, MSHA issued a statement saying scrubbers are an issue they're looking at very closely and further indicated plans to sit down with NIOSH 'in the near future to discuss next steps.'
"Massey has strenuously objected in multiple instances to MSHA's practice of denying our coal miners the benefits of one of the truly significant technical advances of the past 30 years – the scrubber – a device able to physically remove from the atmosphere up to 98% of the harmful dust generated in the mining process.
"NIOSH's study reveals that when scrubbers are turned off, air downwind from a continuous miner measures 11-13 mg/cubic meter of respirable coal dust as opposed to 1-5 mg/cubic meter when scrubbers are running.
"MSHA should take immediate and concrete steps to make the issue of scrubbers an immediate priority for the sake of miners' health. The agency has never provided a written justification for their practice of turning off scrubbers, and there is nothing stopping them from accepting NIOSH's findings and reversing position today. Miners deserve access to the cleanest air that technology can provide."
Massey Energy Company, headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, with operations in West Virginia, Kentucky and Virginia, is the largest coal producer in Central Appalachia and is included in the S&P 500 Index.
SOURCE Massey Energy Company
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