On April 18, 2024, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) published the long-anticipated final rule on respirable crystalline silica for coal mines and metal and nonmetal mines. As expected, this final rule is a...more
On April 16, 2024, the Mine Safety & Health Administration (“MSHA”) released its final rule for Respirable Crystalline Silica (“RCS”) for preliminary viewing, and it was published in the Federal Register on April 18, 2024....more
The Mine Safety and Health Administration (“MSHA”) released its long-anticipated silica rule on Tuesday, April 16, 2024. (See the rule here) The rule is aimed at reducing miners’ exposure to respirable crystalline silica,...more
The Mine Safety & Health Administration (“MSHA”) has finally published its final rule on Safety Programs for Surface Mobile Equipment. This final rule has been a long time coming. MSHA originally published a Request...more
On December 19, 2023, MSHA announced a final rule to have written safety programs for surface mobile equipment (excluding belt conveyers) at surface mines and surface areas of underground mines....more
The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) appropriately held its last stakeholder meeting of 2023 on National Miners Day, which recognizes the Monongah Mine disaster that occurred on December 6, 1907, near Fairmont,...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Mine Safety and Health Administration “remains troubled by the fact that our impact inspections continue to discover the same hazards we’ve identified as root causes for fatal accidents and that we know...more
MSHA has published the proposed silica rule on their website. Among other things, MSHA proposes to set the permissible exposure limit of respirable crystalline silica at 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air (µg/m3) for a full...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: This week we are attending the ABA Workplace and Occupational Safety and Health Law Committee Midwinter Meeting in San Diego, California. The meeting includes representatives from the U.S. Department of...more
Some employers might be surprised to learn that MSHA violations are increasingly common in states not typically associated with mine safety – and that you are much more likely to be cited for certain kinds of violations...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: We recently blogged that Silica is the New Asbestos: New OSHA Regional Emphasis Program Will Target Respirable Silica Hazards in Six States. Now the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) has...more
Last week, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announced a new initiative to strengthen enforcement of its current respirable crystalline silica standards. Crystalline silica is a...more
While the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) continues to work on developing a new crystalline silica standard (that is expected to cut the exposure limit in half), the agency has decided to ramp up enforcement of...more
MSHA has announced a new enforcement initiative regarding overexposure to respirable crystalline silica. The silica enforcement initiative is intended “to take immediate action to reduce the risks the silica exposure.” ...more
On April 4, 2022, MSHA began a new enhanced enforcement program. Due to the number of fatalities around the country, all citations written under the following standards will be considered and reviewed for a special assessment...more
After years of anticipation, federal mining officials are poised to publish a proposed rule on mobile and powered haulage equipment (excluding belt conveyors) at surface mines and surface areas of underground mines. The...more
One year into the pandemic, MSHA has released new guidance to help miners and operators identify the risks of being exposed to COVID-19 at work and to help them determine appropriate control measures to reduce the risk of...more
Within the first days of taking office, President Biden signed many Executive Orders – one of which directs the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) to...more
With Joe Biden now being called the president-elect, we can expect changes to the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) once he takes office in January 2021. Right now, while there is speculation as to who will be the...more
Welcome to “Mining MSHA,” a regular series of posts focusing on mine safety fundamentals – but designed for both new and experienced mine safety professionals. This series will help safety professionals develop their MSHA...more
The Mine Safety and Health Administration (“MSHA”) has declined to issue an Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”) to address pandemic safety for miners. MSHA determined that issuance of an ETS was unnecessary for COVID-19...more