By Brian K. Schimmoller, Contributing Editor
The Sago mine disaster in West Virginia in early January shocked many Americans. Not merely the fact that 12 miners died after news reports made it into print announcing their miraculous survival. Just as shocking was learning that the nation’s coal miners go underground each day with a very limited supply of emergency oxygen. When disaster strikes, sealing exit paths, rescuers are literally in a race against the clock. The sad - yet simultaneously ironic and heroic - truth is that underground coal miners enter the mines each day knowing this is the case, and still they go.
Some see Sago as a painful reminder of America’s dependence on a dirty fuel, as a bitter monument to corporate greed, where mine owners press lofty production goals with blatant disregard for safety concerns and with minimal regulatory oversight. The numbers tell a different story. Sure, coal mine owners are pushing for higher mine productivity: coal prices have reached record high levels in recent months, and the opportunities for record profits are too enticing to pass up, particularly in a cyclical industry like coal mining.
As measured by mine fatalities, coal mining has become much safer in recent years. Annual fatalities have fallen from more than 250 in the early 1970s to just 22 in 2005, a 91 percent decline. Over the same time, U.S. coal mine production has increased 83 percent. Total injury rate (injuries per 200,000 employee hours) has fallen 51 percent since 1991 and total injuries have fallen 68 percent. Coal mining, in fact, is not at the bottom of the industrial occupational list in terms of fatalities. American workers employed in water transportation, logging, fishing, hunting and trapping had fatal incident rates (fatalities per 100,000 workers) two to three times as high as that of coal mining, which shares statistical company with taxi cab drivers and farmers.
So why the hue and cry over coal mining? Where is the same level of outrage for the loggers and commercial fishermen? The main point of distinction is that many coal mine deaths are preventable. While there’s not much that can be done to protect fishermen from the deadly force of a storming sea (short of banning commercial fishing), several steps can be taken to reduce the likelihood and occurrence of coal mine fatalities.
The uproar over coal mining is also due to the coal mining industry’s deadly record so far in 2006. More miners had lost their lives through the end of April - 26 - than in all of 2005. And because of Sago, West Virginia is at the center of the mine safety issue. Reacting to 14 deaths in the state in the span of three weeks, West Virginia legislators quickly passed - in less than one day - a bill that Governor Joe Manchin had introduced to improve coal mine safety. The bill requires improved communications and electronic tracking of miners when underground, faster emergency response and storage of larger quantities of oxygen for miners’ use in emergency situations. West Virginia’s Congressional delegation submitted similar legislation at the federal level. Congress has yet to act on the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 2006.
A number of people have pointed to declines in the Bush Administration’s funding of the Mine Safety and Health Administration as a contributing factor in the safety situation of U.S. coal mines. Actual spending at MSHA, in fact, has risen, from $259 million in 2001 to $280 million in 2005 according to the Office of Management and Budget, although staff levels have reportedly been reduced.
Which is not to say that government is blameless. A 2006 Government Accountability Office report found that, for the more than 235,000 significant and substantial violations from 1993 to 2002 for which a deadline was specified, inspectors did not follow up on more than 48 percent by the deadline. The bottom line for most Americans: where money can be spent to demonstrably enhance miner safety and increase the likelihood of survival in a mine accident, it could and should be spent. The deaths of 12 men at Sago for want of extra oxygen canisters - if that is shown to be the case in the ongoing investigation - may not be criminal, but it’s certainly morally reprehensible.
Mine owners are not blameless, either. While mine owners have been supportive of recent legislative efforts to enhance safety, they must see safety as something more than a requirement to fulfill. Improved safety should be a fundamental business driver. Accidents, incidents and fatalities correspond to higher costs, in the form of higher insurance premiums, unwanted publicity and additional paperwork. The regulatory “stick” must get larger - far heftier fines for everything from poor housekeeping to delayed notification when accidents occur - but mine owners must lead a fundamental and sustainable cultural change with respect to safety.
Coal mine owners should also seriously consider the personnel and union implications. Facing a steep increase in mine production to meet rising demand, coal mine owners may find it increasingly difficult to attract workers if safety standards aren’t improved. Sure, the money’s good, but will today’s youth buy into the risk-reward equation? And every accident makes it more and more likely that union organizers will find traction at non-union mines - a situation those mine owners would like to avoid.
What does all this mean to the power industry? Most likely, it means that higher costs for coal mine safety will be passed through to coal buyers and ultimately to electricity consumers. So be it. A few extra pennies in an electric bill isn’t much when weighed against the life of an underground miner. And for those utilities willing to take a stand for the miners that fuel their power plants, they now have an opportunity to press coal suppliers to enact stricter safety standards.