A few weeks back, one of my clients had an accident at its crusher. From a legal perspective, the details aren’t terribly important. Two guys were hurt, one very seriously. He spent a week in the hospital and faces a long road of rehab ahead. The site supervisor sustained less serious injuries, but he too spent a couple of nights…
Read MoreThere is a push right now to address U.S. mining laws and as you might imagine, there are two sides to the story. Tribal, conservation and community groups representing millions of people filed formal comments with federal agencies calling for more protective hardrock mining rules and legislation, including requiring mineral recycling to protect people and the environment. The comments are…
Read MoreBy Willa B. Perlmutter In my very first column for this publication, I wrote about the KenAmerican Resources case that was then pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, based in Cincinnati. At the time, I wrote that I hoped the Sixth Circuit would take the opportunity to provide much-needed guidance on what exactly “advance notice”…
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By Ramona Monroe As an international studies major in college, I asked myself why some countries are rich while others are poor. I do not recall my international studies classes asking or addressing why some parts of the world developed more quickly than others. Rather, it was a question born from experience. I grew up in western Washington and spent…
Read MoreBy Willa B. Perlmutter In my last column, I talked about MSHA’s plan to issue a new rule requiring surface mine operators to develop and implement written programs that would improve mobile equipment safety. The comment period closed in February and, at this writing, about a month later, MSHA hasn’t yet tipped its hand as to what, if anything, it…
Read MoreBy Willa B. Perlmutter The latest big development in the MSHA regulatory space is a proposed rule that would require mine operators to develop and implement written programs that focus on improving the safety of surface mobile equipment. Back in 2018, because of the disproportionately high contribution of mobile equipment to mine fatalities, MSHA asked for input so it could…
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The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), passed Nov. 5, is the most important piece of transportation legislation since the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956. At the core of the legislation is a five-year, $304 billion reauthorization of surface transportation programs. The bill also includes an additional $550 billion in new funding that is disbursed for building hard infrastructure.…
Read MoreBy Caroline J. Sundbaum and Willa B. Perlmutter, Stoel Rives LLP Just a few short months ago, we would have thought that COVID-19 was almost behind us and that it was only a matter of time before mine operators would no longer have to worry about the spread of the disease at their worksites. It looked like face masks and…
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By Willa B. Perlmutter In general, the mining industry is pretty well versed in the Mine Act. Mine operators know that under the authority of the Act, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) adopts mandatory safety and health standards they have to follow. They know that because the Act requires it, MSHA inspects surface mines twice per year, underground…
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The National Mining Association (NMA) released new polling showing that the vast majority of voters – including a majority of Democrats, Republicans and Independents – want to see the Biden administration and Congress support domestic mining projects to create jobs, secure our supply chains and reduce reliance on foreign countries for minerals we could be mining here at home.
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