Hosted by Wheeling Jesuit University in Wheeling, West Virginia, the symposium is scheduled for April 20-22. It will spotlight mine equipment approvals, the acceleration of the implementation of technologies, and will also provide the opportunity for developers and manufacturers to demonstrate products that can aid in this effort, according to MSHA.
State Governor Joe Manchin told the West Virginia Record the announcement is part of a promise he made to the citizens of the state and the mining community: “I’ve made a commitment to do everything possible to make West Virginia’s mines the safest in the nation. This symposium – the first of its kind – will move us closer to that goal.”
Co-sponsors MSHA and NIOSH agreed that the event, for which industry experts from all over the world have been invited to participate, will have a significant benefit for the coal community.
“As MSHA moves forward with new emergency regulations to better protect miners’ lives, we see this symposium as a critical opportunity to highlight life-saving technologies and best practices,” said MSHA acting assistant secretary David Dye.
“We must continue to do everything in our power to improve the health and safety of miners in this country.
“This is an important step in focusing national attention on critical mining safety and health needs that must be met promptly and effectively,” concurred NIOSH director John Howard in the Record.
MSHA, NIOSH, the West Virginia Coal Association, the National Mining Association, the United Mine Workers of America and the West Virginia Office of Miners’ Health Safety and Training, among others, will be on hand to examine technologies and “discuss deployment strategies,” an MSHA release said.
