Wooten said the Office of Miners’ Health, Safety and Training will step up its efforts to implement requirements for mines to add self-contained self-rescuers, emergency shelters, and communications and tracking devices to their operations.
“Since taking the role of director three months ago, I have reviewed the progress within the office and throughout state mines, and I believe the time is now to require that mines get these safety features in their mines as fast as possible or face the consequences of enforcement actions,” Wooten said.
“Much groundwork was completed last year, and we must move quickly to build on that foundation and honour our commitment to make our mines the safest in the nation.”
Wooten applauded the work of the six-member mine safety technology task force that worked tirelessly for almost a year in researching and reviewing equipment and making solid recommendations to the Office of Miners’ Health, Safety and Training.
“This team of labour and management leaders has taken its task to heart and worked many long hours to give us a blueprint for installing safety equipment in the mines,” he said.
Wooten’s team will pay specific attention to the introduction of SCSR caches, emergency shelters, and communications and tracking devices as it moves forward with its review of what is being done.
“I am not satisfied, nor can the mining industry be satisfied, with just meeting regulations’ deadlines,” Wooten said.
“We must meet the spirit of the law by doing everything we can to get safer conditions in our mines as fast as we can.
“And we cannot wait for perfect-fit solutions; we need to make the best use of what’s available, upgrading as we are able.”
The Miners’ Health, Safety and Training district offices are contacting all mines to determine how many mines have completed their SCSR studies, ordered equipment and put into place as many SCSRs as are available to them.
The office anticipates that as many as five emergency shelters will be presented to it by three manufacturers. The office will examine the shelters and expedite approval of their use so state mines can order the shelters and put them in place ahead of the schedule originally set.
With regard to communications and tracking devices, Wooten said that by taking a commonsense approach, mines can introduce some systems which are available now.
“These are not the complete wireless systems we hope to see in mines in the near future,” Wooten said.
“But they are reliable wireless systems that provide present-day communications while additional work is done on more advanced technology.
“I also am making a commitment to the industry and the public that the Office of Miners’ Health, Safety and Training will communicate its efforts – both in pushing forward with mine safety and expediting compliance – as quickly as possible.”
