MINE COLLAPSE RAISES QUESTIONS

Mine deaths spark criticism of operator's record
April 6, 2010 (CNN)

"The deaths of at least 25 workers in a West Virginia coal mine this week have turned a harsh spotlight on the safety record of the mine's owner, which has paid record fines for safety and environmental violations.

"Virginia-based Massey Energy Co. has racked up millions of dollars in penalties in recent years. The Montcoal, West Virginia, mine where Monday's fatal explosion took place received 458 citations from federal inspectors in 2009, and more than 50 of those were for problems that the operators knew about but had not corrected, according to federal mine safety records."

The Massey Energy Upper Big Branch mine. (click to enlarge)

"The federal Mine Safety and Health Administration hit the company with nearly $900,000 in fines in 2009 and has sought more than $100,000 in the first quarter of 2010. Inspectors cited the operators more than 100 times in the first quarter of 2010, including six times for "unwarrantable failure" to correct violations…

"Massey Energy has paid less than $200,000 of the penalties assessed at the Upper Big Branch South Mine in Montcoal and is challenging some of the penalties…Massey Energy is the fourth-largest American coal producer and the largest mine operator in central Appalachia. It churned out 38 million tons of coal in 2009, 1.2 million tons of which came from the Upper Big Branch South Mine, and reported earnings of $497 million."

There will be a time to write about the dirtiness of coal but now, with lives hanging by a thread of hope, is not that time. From AssociatedPress via YouTube

"Its annual corporate [report] says that safety is its No. 1 concern…[But the ] explosion at the Upper Big Branch South Mine was the fourth fatal accident there in 12 years…[A] 2006 fire killed two miners in the Alma Mine No. 1, operated by Massey subsidiary Aracoma Coal Co. Aracoma pleaded guilty to 10 criminal charges in connection with the fire and paid a record $4.2 million in fines and civil penalties…In January 2008, Massey paid $20 million in fines for Clean Water Act violations…Federal regulators accused the company of violating its Clean Water Act permits more than 4,500 times between January 2000 and December 2006, sometimes discharging more than 10 times the allowable amounts of metals, sediment and acids into rivers and lakes in those states…

"Industry analyst Ellen Smith said the safety record of Massey mines has improved…and three installations won safety awards in 2009…[W]hat raises the biggest red flags at the Upper Big Branch South Mine, which employs about 200 miners, are "unwarrantable failure" violations, which include citations involving escape routes for miners and air quality ventilation…"