More Time Needed to Weigh-In on Silica Standards

What happened: ARTBA’s Vice President & Counsel for Regulatory Affairs Prianka Sharma and Senior Vice President for Safety & Education Brad Sant testified Aug. 2 before a Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) hearing, asking for more time to comment on the agency’s proposed safety standards for respirable silica.

Why it matters: The proposed standards apply to all coal, metal, and non-metal mines and set permissible levels of silica exposure at 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air for miners working a full shift. The current level is 100. The proposal also requires new sampling requirements, medical surveillance, and recordkeeping.

Several ARTBA members say the proposal as written is not feasible, requiring more time to comply. If finalized, the rule takes effect 120 days after publication. ARTBA asked MSHA for a comment period extension to foster more public engagement on the rule and requested MSHA consider a longer compliance deadline as well.

What’s next: Regulated industries have until Aug. 28 to file written comments. To share comments on the proposal, contact ARTBA’s Prianka Sharma or Brad Sant.