The 35th Annual Mining Symposium which concluded last Friday had the
largest attendance ever with over 800 registering. A very special
THANKS to BrickStreet Mutual Insurance Co. for co-sponsoring the 35th
Annual Mining Symposium and also to Jackson Kelly PLLC, Dinsmore &
Shohl, LLP, Bowles, Rice, McDavid, Graff & Love, Spilman, Thomas
& Battle and Steptoe & Johnson PLLC for their sponsorship of
the various breakfasts and luncheons.
The 35th Annual Mining Symposium which concluded last Friday had the largest attendance ever with over 800 registering. A very special THANKS to BrickStreet Mutual Insurance Co. for co-sponsoring the 35th Annual Mining Symposium and also to Jackson Kelly PLLC, Dinsmore & Shohl, LLP, Bowles, Rice, McDavid, Graff & Love, Spilman, Thomas & Battle and Steptoe & Johnson PLLC for their sponsorship of the various breakfasts and luncheons.
The Wednesday Health & Safety Session and the Environmental Session had outstanding speakers and/or presenters all of whom did an excellent job of covering the many issues that the industry is facing.
On Thursday WVCA Vice Chairman Kevin Crutchfield led the morning program discussing the Appalachian Coal Markets, followed by the State of the State by Governor Manchin, U. S. Energy Strategy by Senator John D. Rockefeller, IV and NMA Chairman and CEO & President of Foundation Coal Jim Roberts discussed “Optimists or Pessimists—Who Will Control Coal’s Future.
Kenneth Nemeth of the Southern States Energy Board talked about the American Energy Securities Study and Dr. Charles Bayless, Provost of West Virginia Tech discussed Transmission Issues. In the afternoon session we heard from Richard Stickler, Assistant Secretary of Labor, MSHA on National Mine Safety Perspectives, Attorney Gene Trisko on Global Climate Change, Dr. Gerry Finfinger of MSHA on Mine Health & Safety Research and Jackson Kelly Attorney Bob McLusky with a WV Environmental Litigation Update. Ron Wooten, Director of the WV Office of Miner’s Health, Safety & Training was the keynote speaker at the Mountaineer Guardian Awards Luncheon.
Friday’s program began with WV Chief Supreme Court Justice Spike Maynard, who is always entertaining as well as informative, then Nick Carter of Natural Resource Partners on the Master Limited Partnership Transactions in the Coal Industry, Kentucky Coal Association President Bill Caylor on the Eastern Coal States Coalition, WV DEP Deputy Director Randy Huffman discussing the WV Mining & Reclamation Program, Attorney Nick Preservati with Oil & Gas Issues and Lawrence Gochioco with GeoNano Technical Corp. Cabinet Secretary Stephanie Timmermeyer of DEP was the keynote speaker at the Reclamation Awards Luncheon.
As you can see we had an award winning Symposium and we THANK each of the speakers on a job very well done.
Congratulations to the following on receiving Mountaineer Guardian Awards: For Underground Operations in Region 1: Eastern Associated Coal Corp.’s Federal #2; McElroy Coal Co., McElroy Mine; Mettiki Coal, LLC (WV), Mettiki E. Mine. Region 2: Blue Haven Energy, No. 5 Mine. Region 3: Elk Run Coal Co., Black King 1-N Portal; Laurel Creek Co., Inc., No. 5. Region 4: Brooks Run Mining, Mine No. 5; Remington LLC, Campbell’s Creek #7 and White Buck Coal Co., White Buck #2.
Surface Operations in Region 2: Premium Energy, LLC, Surface Mine #3 and Simmons Fork Mining, Inc., Paynter Branch. Region 3: Phoenix Coal Mac Mining, Inc, Holden 22 Surface and Band Mill Coal Corp., Tower Mountain Surface. Region 4: Fola Coal Company, LLC, Surface Mine #1 and ICG Eastern, LLC, Birch River Mine. Preparation Plants in Region 2: Kepler Processing Co., LLC, Kepler No. 1 Plant. Region 3: Emerald Processing LLC, South Hollow Plant, Hampden Coal Co., Inc., No. 1 Prep Plant, Mingo Logan Coal Co., Cardinal Prep. Plant and Pine Ridge Coal Co. LLC, Big Mountain Preparation Plant. Region 4: Appalachian Fuels, LLC, Alloy Prep Plant, Brooks Run Mining Co., Brooks Run #1 Plant, Catenary Coal Company, Tom’s Fork Loadout and ICG Eastern, LLC, Birch River Plant. Independent Contractor Award was presented to Cecil I. Walker Machinery Co. and J F Allen Co. received the Quarry Award.
2007 Barton B. Lay, Jr. Milestones of Safety Award went to Consolidation Coal Company’s Robinson Run Mine with 1,071,364 man hours, with an accident frequency rate of 1.12 with 502 employees.
Environmental Excellence Awards were presented to Rum Creek Coal Sales, Anna Branch Surface Mine; Coal-Mac, Inc., Phoenix No. 1 Surface Mine; Kepler Processing Co., Big Branch Coarse Refuse Facility; ICG-Patriot Mining Company, Albright Refuse Facility; Aracoma Coal Company, Ethel Hollow Haul Road; Wolf Run Mining Co., Inc., Imperial Mine; Colony Bay Coal Co., Stockton Mine; and, Burn Coal, Inc.
Lexington Coal Company – LLC West Virginia, Notomine Operations received the Special Reclamation Award for outstanding performance in the reclamation of a 20-year old surface mining operation and its related valley fills in Kanawha and Raleigh Counties.
Mitigation Awards went to Fola Coal Company, Inc., Surface Mine No. 4 & Laurel Fork Surface Mine and to Coal River Energy, LLC, Coal River complex.
Woodland Awards were presented to Elk Run Coal Company’s Black Castle Mining Company for 2006 and the 2007 WV Woodlands Award was presented to Fola Coal Company.
Letart Corporation and Boxley Aggregates of West Virginia were awarded special Quarry Awards and AML Awards were issued to Eastern Arrow, Inc.’s Weaver Portals and Mine Drainage Project for the North and AML-South Award went to Green Mountain Company’s Carswell Eroding Refuse Project.
The Greenlands Award 2007 was presented to ICG Eastern, Inc.’s Birch River Mine Complex in Webster County for overall outstanding environmental performance in the ongoing mining and reclamation efforts at a large surface mine and its associated coal preparation and coal handling facilities.
Plans are already in the works for next year’s Symposium which will be held in February due to the election year – probably February 18 – 20, 2009.
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