Senate Bill 357 contains major enhancements in mine safety and environmental law that will strengthen West Virginia’s laws by being more reflective of actual conditions and practices in today’s modern coal mines and will bring us more in line with the federal laws and regulations, as well as with the laws/regulations/practices in other coal producing states. Specifically, there are five (5) mine safety provisions and six (6) agreed-to environmental provisions contained in the bill.
Safety Provisions
1. Equalize Drug Testing Standards
SB 357 strengthens the drug testing program for all miners. In the existing law, if miners failed a drug test they immediately lost their certification until they worked through an established appeal procedure before the Governor’s appointed Coal Mine Board of Appeals. Others, who were/are under a collective bargaining agreement, did not immediately lose their certification upon failing a drug test. SB 357 removes those differences and now everyone in the industry will work under the same standard.
2. Movement of Mining Equipment Underground
Under current West Virginia law the movement of mining equipment, except for sectional moves, is prohibited with men inby. The federal law allows for equipment moves with men inby even where energized trolley wire exists. S.B. 357 allows for equipment to be moved with men inby, as long as there is no energized trolley wire in the immediate area.
3. Track Maintenance
For mines that transport miners exclusively by track, the current law requires the track to be no more than 500 feet from the face. However, the WV Coal Mine Technical Review Committee and the Office of Miners’ Health Safety and Training regularly grant variances, some of which extend up to 1,600 feet. S.B. 357 eliminates this administrative step of obtaining a variance by increasing the distance track must be maintained to 1,500 feet from the face. Under SB 357, two self-propelled vehicles must be readily available on each section and capable of transporting miners in case of an emergency.
4. Sideboards on Shuttle Cars with Cameras
S.B. 357 will allow the use of sideboards on shuttle cars if those shuttle cars are equipped with cameras. Further, the director of the OMHS&T must give approval for manufacturer-specified sideboards without the use of cameras.
5. Terminate Diesel Commission
Under current law diesel equipment must be approved by a six-member diesel commission. SB 357 will remove unnecessary delays by abolishing the Diesel Commission and placing the testing, review and approval of diesel equipment in the hands of the West Virginia Office of Miners Health, Safety and Training, who currently does the inspection and final approvals before deployment.
Environmental
1. Changes Aluminum Standards to hardness-based standard
WV’s strict aluminum limit does not take into account anything but the pure amount of aluminum in the effluent. S.B. 357 changes the aluminum limit to a hardness-based standard. The harder the water in the stream (i.e., natural positive ions like calcium) the less effect aluminum has on aquatic life. WV DEP proposed this very change last year. VA and KY have no aluminum limits and PA just has an acute limit.
2. Requires DEP to propose new contemporaneous reclamation rules
This provision simply asks the DEP to revise their regulations on contemporaneous reclamation to match more closely the federal rules.
3. Requires DEP to propose new inactive state rules
This provision simply asks the DEP to revise their regulations on inactive states to match more closely the federal rules. Currently there is a 3-year limit on putting a mine on inactive status, then reclamationmust begin, while there is no time limit under federal rule. This will give more flexibility inmarket decisions.
4. Allows for additional methods allowed for refuse impoundments
This is a simple provision to allow mining companies to use other methods to construct refuse impoundments. The rules have not been updated for many years and there have been technological advancements made in this area. For instance, allowing the use of caps and liners similar to the ones used for landfills.
5. Penalty Conformity
It conforms the state penalty process for NPDES permits to that of EPA.
6. Permit as a shield
This will put in state law the “permit as a shield” language that DEP has placed in their water quality standard regulations. It will treat coal mining NPDES permits as every other industrial NPDES permit, meaning compliance with those standards/parameters specifically named in the permit.