Alarmed that black lung disease routinely goes unreported decades after it was discovered among miners, federal mine safety officials are touting new regulations that will step up monitoring for the coal dust that causes the deadly disease.
Beginning February 1, the Mine Safety and Health Administration will require coal operators to increase the number of air samples taken in underground mines. The agency also will require miners working in the dustiest underground conditions to wear personal devices that give real-time readings on air quality.
The government’s top mine safety official, Joe Main, said pneumoconiosis, which kills about 1,000 coal miners a year, is likely afflicting far more miners than the data collected by his agency shows. From October 2010 through the end of September, mine operators reported 701 cases of black lung, but in a four-year span from 2010 to 2014, 3,675 miners were awarded black lung benefits, according to Mine Safety and Health Administration.
Industry officials say there are many reasons for the reporting discrepancy. However, they say that because miners are not required to report a diagnosis to their employer, the workers should be screened for black lung disease and be required to report a diagnosis.
Black lung has no cure and causes significant breathing problems, degrading movement and sometimes leading to early death. Since there is no cure, Main said, the focus is on prevention. That means limiting exposure to coal dust in underground mines.
Main said some underground mines have been found not using the proper controls to mitigate dust. Since 2010, Federal inspectors found more than 30 mines violating safety laws by operating without sufficient dust controls, meaning miners could have been exposed to excess dust.
Source: AP
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