{"id":547738,"date":"2010-04-30T06:00:30","date_gmt":"2010-04-30T10:00:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/washingtonindependent.com\/?p=83591"},"modified":"2010-04-30T06:00:30","modified_gmt":"2010-04-30T10:00:30","slug":"coal-country-lawmakers-stay-silent-on-mine-safety-debate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/547738","title":{"rendered":"Coal Country Lawmakers Stay Silent on Mine Safety Debate"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_83590\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"width: 490px\"><a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/mcconnell.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-83590\" title=\"20100118_jes_cr1_650.jpg\" src=\"http:\/\/washingtonindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/mcconnell-480x334.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"480\" height=\"334\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has not addressed the need for mine safety reform in the wake of the Upper Big Branch explosion. (Zuma)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Wednesday\u2019s <a id=\"huow\" title=\"fatal collapse\" href=\"http:\/\/www.register-herald.com\/breakingnews\/x537287765\/2-miners-missing-in-Kentucky-roof-fall\">fatal collapse<\/a> at a Western  Kentucky coal mine is a stark reminder that mine safety is hardly an  issue peculiar to one state or one company. But you\u2019d never know it  based on the reaction from a long list of coal-country lawmakers.<\/p>\n<p>Despite  <a id=\"dqr1\" title=\"back\" href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/wp-dyn\/content\/gallery\/2010\/04\/06\/GA2010040600590.html\">back<\/a>-to-<a id=\"ebpw\" title=\"back\" href=\"http:\/\/www.poetryfoundation.org\/harriet\/2010\/04\/another-miner-dies-in-raleigh-county-west-virginia\/\">back<\/a>-to-<a id=\"qxok\" title=\"back\" href=\"http:\/\/www.forbes.com\/feeds\/ap\/2010\/04\/29\/general-us-kentucky-mine-accident_7562755.html?boxes=Homepagebusinessnews\">back<\/a> fatal accidents at Appalachian coal  mines this month, most regional lawmakers remain reluctant to enter the  emerging debate over what\u2019s gone wrong, to debate how to prevent the  next disaster, and to consider whether Congress should step in with new  laws to protect the nation\u2019s miners.<\/p>\n<p><div id=\"attachment_3087\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"width: 140px\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3087\" title=\"congress\" src=\"http:\/\/washingtonindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/congress.jpg\" alt=\"Image by: Matt Mahurin\" width=\"130\" height=\"130\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image by: Matt Mahurin<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"floatButtons\">\n<div style=\"float: left; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;\"><script src=\"http:\/\/digg.com\/tools\/diggthis.js\" type=\"text\/javascript\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div style=\"float: left; margin-bottom: 10px;\"><script type=\"text\/javascript\"\n\tsrc=\"http:\/\/d.yimg.com\/ds\/badge2.js\"\n\tbadgetype=\"square\">\n\t<?php the_permalink(); ?><\/script><\/div>\n<div style=\"float: left; margin-right: 10px;\">\n\t<script type=\"text\/javascript\">\ntweetmeme_source = \"TWI_news\";\ntweetmeme_service = \"bit.ly\";\n<\/script> <script src=\"http:\/\/tweetmeme.com\/i\/scripts\/button.js\" type=\"text\/javascript\"><\/script>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"float: left;\"><a name=\"fb_share\" type=\"box_count\" href=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php\">Share<\/a><script src=\"http:\/\/static.ak.fbcdn.net\/connect.php\/js\/FB.Share\" type=\"text\/javascript\"><\/script><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p> Their silence  highlights the tremendous influence of coal companies in the Appalachian  states, among the poorest in the country, where the industry supports  tens-of-thousands of jobs and contributes hundreds-of-thousands of  dollars to convince lawmakers that things like new safety measures are  unnecessary. Indeed, throughout Kentucky and Virginia, the lawmakers  most reluctant to weigh in on mine-safety policies this month are also  those who&#8217;ve accepted the most money from the companies.<\/p>\n<p>That  hesitancy to confront the industry &#8212; <a id=\"y:bt\" title=\"glaring\" href=\"http:\/\/washingtonindependent.com\/81669\/silence-from-other-coal-country-lawmakers-in-wake-of-west-virginia-blast\">glaring<\/a> in the wake of the deadly April 5  blast at Upper Big Branch, when West Virginia\u2019s lawmakers were the lone  Appalachian voices calling for reforms &#8212; remains on display this week,  even after a roof fall at Kentucky&#8217;s Dotiki Mine killed two more miners  Wednesday. Though the companies were different &#8212; Virginia-based Massey  Energy owns the Upper Big Branch, and Alliance Resource Partners, based  in Oklahoma, owns Dotiki &#8212; both projects have run up a long list of  safety violations this year (see <a id=\"pukm\" title=\"here\" href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/wp-dyn\/content\/article\/2010\/04\/05\/AR2010040503877.html\">here<\/a> and <a id=\"i1to\" title=\"here\" href=\"http:\/\/washingtonindependent.com\/83546\/kentucky-mine-cited-for-214-safety-violations-this-year\">here<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>A third fatal  accident &#8212; at a West Virginia mine owned by International Coal Group  &#8211;\u00a0<a id=\"m7jd\" title=\"occurred\" href=\"http:\/\/wowktv.com\/story.cfm?func=viewstory&amp;storyid=78768#comments\">occurred<\/a> April 22. All told, Appalachian  coal-mining accidents have claimed the lives of 32 miners in April  alone.<\/p>\n<p>No matter.<\/p>\n<p>Although Sen.  Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) took to the chamber floor Thursday afternoon to  offer condolences and prayers, there was nothing in his brief speech to  indicate that the nation\u2019s mine-safety policies might be failing miners,  or that Congress has any responsibility to intervene. And his office,  which had declined to answer questions along those lines in the wake of  the UBB blast, went silent again Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor now, we  can only hope that their efforts are successful,\u201d McConnell said of the  rescuers searching for a missing miner, <a id=\"gyg5\" title=\"who would later turn up dead\" href=\"http:\/\/blogs.wvgazette.com\/coaltattoo\/2010\/04\/29\/bad-news-from-ky-second-miner-found-dead\/\">who would later turn up  dead<\/a>. \u201cI ask my colleagues and the American people to keep the  miners, their families, and the rescue workers in their prayers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The  other members of Kentucky\u2019s congressional delegation didn\u2019t go even  that far. Rep. Ed Whitfield (R), who represents Webster County, where  this week&#8217;s roof collapse took place, has, as of this writing, no  mention of the accident on his website (although it does contain a  statement &#8212; issued just hours before Wednesday&#8217;s accident &#8212; <a id=\"c-t4\" title=\"attacking\" href=\"http:\/\/whitfield.house.gov\/2010\/04\/whitfield-slams-administration-for-campaign-against-coal.shtml\">attacking<\/a> the Obama administration for  being too tough on the coal industry). Whitfield&#8217;s office did not  respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n<p>McConnell and  Whitfield are hardly alone. The offices of Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.),  Rep. Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) and Rep. Rick Boucher (D-Va.) have also declined  repeated requests for comment on mine safety in the wake of the Upper  Big Branch disaster &#8212; a silence that&#8217;s continued this week following  the disaster in Webster County. All three lawmakers represent prominent  coal-producing districts where mining companies have racked up thousands  of safety violations this year alone.<\/p>\n<p>For  example, Pike County, Ky., represented by Rogers, is home to Freedom  Mine #1, a Massey-owned project that\u2019s tallied more than 400 safety  citations since Jan. 1. Among the violations are a number involving  problems with mine ventilation systems and the accumulation of  combustible materials &#8212; the same combination suspected to have caused  the explosion at the Upper Big Branch. Dozens of those problems were  deemed &#8220;significant and substantial,&#8221; indicating that they are  \u201creasonably likely to result in a reasonably serious injury or illness.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Another  example: Boucher represents Tazewell County, Va., which is home to the  Tiller No. 1 Mine. That Massey-controlled project has been cited more  than 70 times this year for safety infractions, including vent problems,  accumulations of combustibles and a failure to maintain escapeways.  Forty of those citations fell into the S&amp;S category.<\/p>\n<p>And  the list goes on.<\/p>\n<p>That the lawmakers representing these mines  haven&#8217;t confronted the companies over their dubious safety records,  critics argue, owes a great deal to the steady flow of money from the  industry to those members. McConnell, for example, has accepted more  than $486,000 from the coal mining industry over his career, <a id=\"uwu3\" title=\"according to the Center for Responsive Politics\" href=\"http:\/\/www.opensecrets.org\/industries\/summary.php?ind=E1210&amp;cycle=All&amp;recipdetail=M&amp;sortorder=U\">according  to the Center for Responsive Politics<\/a> &#8212; far and away the most of  any active Capitol Hill lawmaker. Rogers ranks second, with industry  contributions totaling more than $241,000. Boucher stands fifth, having  taken more than $186,000 from coal companies during his tenure on the  Hill. And Whitfield&#8217;s <a id=\"tf1_\" title=\"career tally\" href=\"http:\/\/www.opensecrets.org\/industries\/summary.php?ind=E1210&amp;cycle=All&amp;recipdetail=H&amp;mem=Y\">career tally<\/a> of more than $100,000  places him eighth among all active members in the House.<\/p>\n<p>Not that there aren&#8217;t  exceptions to the reluctance of Appalachian lawmakers to discuss mine  safety in recent weeks. Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.), for example, though not a  member of the Senate labor committee, submitted a statement to that  panel when it met earlier this week to discuss mine safety. &#8220;We can &#8212;  and must &#8212; do better by our miners,&#8221; Webb <a id=\"sn40\" title=\"said\" href=\"http:\/\/webb.senate.gov\/newsroom\/pressreleases\/2010-04-27-01.cfm\">said<\/a>, &#8220;when it comes to enforcing safety  regulations and ensuring that companies don\u2019t walk away from their  responsibility to their workers.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Still, Big Coal&#8217;s  influence, combined with <a id=\"klzj\" title=\"the industry's opposition\" href=\"http:\/\/blogs.wvgazette.com\/coaltattoo\/2010\/04\/27\/coal-industry-no-new-mine-safety-rules-needed\/\">the industry&#8217;s opposition<\/a> to any new mine-safety regulations, means there will likely be a tough  road ahead for the reform-minded lawmakers already pushing for stricter  rules. Indeed, Bruce Watzman, spokesman for the National Mining  Association, told Senate lawmakers Tuesday that no new legislation is  required to prevent the next mining tragedy.<\/p>\n<p>Federal  regulators, he <a id=\"fdvj\" title=\"said\" href=\"http:\/\/help.senate.gov\/imo\/media\/doc\/Watzman3.pdf\">said<\/a> a day before the Dotiki tragedy, already have all  the tools they need.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has not addressed the need for mine safety reform in the wake of the Upper Big Branch explosion. (Zuma) Wednesday\u2019s fatal collapse at a Western Kentucky coal mine is a stark reminder that mine safety is hardly an issue peculiar to one state or one company. But you\u2019d never [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4315,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-547738","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547738","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4315"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=547738"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547738\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=547738"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=547738"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=547738"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}