Awards presented during 41st Annual Mining Symposium in Charleston

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Forty-two West Virginia mining operations have been recognized by the industry for their safety efforts in 2013. The awards were announced on January 30^th during the West Virginia Coal Association’s 41^st Annual Mining Symposium in Charleston.

“Our members are committed to doing everything possible to ensure our coal miners return home safely at the end of their shifts each day,” said West Virginia Coal Association President Bill Raney. “Each and every one of our companies work hard every day to meet the highest standards of workplace safety.”

 

The first Coal Caucus meeting of the House of Delegates will be held on Monday, January 20^th, beginning at 11:30 a.m. in Room 252 on the House of Delegates side of the Capitol Building.  Last week’s meeting had to be cancelled because of the chemical spill and water problems in Charleston.  Following the Coal Caucus the WVCA Government Affairs Committee will hold a meeting in the same location.

To register for the WV Coal Mining Symposium please go to: http://www.wvcoal.com/2014-symposium-registration.html to make your reservations for the Symposium and pay by credit card, if you so desire, or I will invoice your company.  If you have more than one attending and would like to submit one registration form, please indicate how many will attend each event and then list the names in the comment section.  Don’t need to know who will be attending what function, just a number, then the name so nametags will be available upon your arrival.  If you have any questions or concerns, please give me a call or e-mail.  (304) 342-4153 or sdavison@wvcoal.com.  The agenda, as it is updated and stands now, is at this site as well.

The State Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety agreed to propose for public comment an Administrative Rule requiring proximity detectors on place-change continuous mining machines along with a number of additional safety standards for underground section haulage equipment and equipment operators.

Before adoption of the proposed rule, a number of changes were made which are highlighted in the below summation.

Senate Bill 355 -- Water Use Legislation Introduced

The legislation makes several changes to the West Virginia Water Resources Management Act (WVWRMA).  A summary of the draft bill, prepared by the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce, is below.  The bill is double referenced, first to the Senate’s Natural Resources  Committee http://www.legis.state.wv.us/committees/senate/SenateCommittee.cfm?Chart=nr and then to the Judiciary Committeehttp://www.legis.state.wv.us/committees/senate/SenateCommittee.cfm?Chart=jud We expect a companion bill to be introduced in the House as well.  The provisions of SB 355 are also included in SB 373.