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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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Miner safety bill now law
HARRISBURG, July 7 – House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese, D-Greene/Fayette/Washington, today hailed the enactment of legislation that will ensure stronger mine safety standards for Pennsylvania bituminous coal miners, many of who live and work in DeWeese's legislative district.
Gov. Ed Rendell today signed the legislation (S.B. 949) DeWeese steered through the House at the Robena Mine Memorial in Carmichaels. More than 100 public officials, coal miners and local residents attended the bill signing.
Rendell praised the top House Democrat's involvement in the legislation, saying DeWeese, "made this a personal crusade to see this bill become law."
DeWeese credited the change in law to constant dialogue among House and Senate lawmakers, Rendell, Department of Environmental Protection, the United Mine Workers of America and the Pennsylvania Coal Association.
"The determination and discourse among everyone involved in the discussions was unremitting," DeWeese said. "It was inspiring to work toward the common desire to secure the best mine safety law in the nation for the thousands of Pennsylvania miners who descend to the earth's recesses day in and day out so that we may have energy to heat and cool our homes, run our televisions, wash our clothes and live our daily lives."
A key provision DeWeese fought for in the new law will permit a representative of the miners, selected by at least two miners, to accompany a state inspector on mine inspections, also known as "walk around rights." The representative must be employed by the mine being inspected.
Other provisions:
· require detailed examination of equipment at the beginning of each shift and throughout the shift;
· require fire-related safeguards and specific ventilating practices;
· give miners a better opportunity to escape or transport injured miners when an emergency occurs through specified track distance and transport vehicle standards; and
· prohibit dual compartment shafts. The distance between emergency escape shafts could be no less than 200 feet, and the distance between openings to the surface of slopes and between drifts could be no less than 50 feet.
In addition to working to update Pennsylvania's miner safety law, DeWeese last year secured $4.3 million in state capital budget funds for the United Mine Workers of America Career Center in Ruff Creek to build an $8.6 million Miners Training School for current and future workers.
The UMWA is purchasing the old Gateway mine portal, land and buildings and using the 63-acre site to construct a simulated mine so students can learn to operate underground machinery in an atmosphere similar to a coal mine. The mission of the UMWA school is to establish a comprehensive training facility resulting in a certification of underground mining. There is no other facility in the country conducting this type of innovative training with aspects open to the general public.
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