In an effort to combat the rising rates of black lung
disease, West Virginia Senator Jay Rockefeller (D) has introduced a bill
imposing a deadline on the Mine Safety and Health Administration’s proposal to
reduce respirable dust in mines.
MSHA had originally planned to have a proposal finalized by
September but recently announced it will not meet that deadline. The new bill,
Black Lung Health Improvement Act of 2013, does not require a specific new coal
dust limit but mandates that MSHA set one within six months. The legislation
also notes that the final rule must lower the legal exposure levels “in order
to provide the maximum feasible protection” for miners.
Black lung disease was historically a significant problem
until 1959, when the coal mine safety law passed and disease rates declined
considerably. Recently, however, the disease has grown more prevalent and has
been affecting younger miners with fewer years of exposure than those who had
been diagnosed in previous decades. NIOSH statistics show that from 1996 to
2005, approximately 10,000 U.S. coal miners died from the disease.
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