[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 164 (Thursday, August 25, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49927-49928]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-16895]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[30Day-05-05AF]


Proposed Data Collections Submitted for Public Comment and 
Recommendations

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) publishes a 
list of information collection requests under review by the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) in compliance with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). To request a copy of these requests, call 
the CDC Reports Clearance Officer at (404) 371-5983 or send an e-mail 
to [email protected]. Send written comments to CDC Desk Officer, Office of 
Management and Budget, Washington, DC or by fax to (202) 395-6974. 
Written comments should be received within 30 days of this notice.

Proposed Project

    How Miners Modify Their Behavior In Response To Personal Dust 
Monitor Information--New--National Institute for Occupational Safety 
and Health (NIOSH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Background and Brief Description

    The Federal Mine Safety & Health Act of 1977, Section 501, and the 
Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, Public Law 91-256 enables 
CDC/NIOSH to carry out research relevant to the health and safety of 
workers in the mining industry. The objective of this project is to 
document how coal miners can use real-time information from their 
personal dust monitors (PDM) to reduce their exposure to respirable 
dust. The specific aims are to (1) identify several specific examples 
of how miners use PDM information to discover which parts of their jobs 
and/or which aspects of their work environment may be causing them to 
be overexposed to respirable dust, and (2) identify the types of 
changes that miners could make in order to try to reduce their 
exposure. Although the most recent data on the prevalence of Coal 
Workers' Pneumoconiosis (CWP) in the United States indicates that it is 
declining, substantial numbers of CWP cases continue to be diagnosed. 
In recent years, CWP has contributed to the deaths of approximately 
1,000 people in the U.S. each year.
    A personal dust monitor (PDM) has recently been developed through a 
collaboration involving NIOSH, the Bituminous Coal Operators' 
Association, the United Mine Workers of America, the National Mining 
Association, and Rupprecht & Patashnick Co., Inc. This new device 
represents a major advance in the tools available for assessing coal 
miners' exposure to respirable dust levels. It will soon be field 
tested with coal miners throughout the U.S. As with the introduction of 
any new technology, it is very important to systematically document how 
workers react to it and make use of it. If miners know how to properly 
use the information PDMs are capable of providing, they should be able 
to make adjustments to their work place or work procedures that will 
reduce their exposure to respirable coal dust.
    Various parties have speculated about the processes by which miners 
will use the information to reduce their exposure to respirable dust. 
There appears to be great potential. However, no one knows precisely 
how miners performing a wide variety of tasks and jobs are actually 
going to use this new information to reduce their exposure to dust. It 
is assumed that, once PDMs are introduced, miners will eventually find 
new ways to reduce their exposure to

[[Page 49928]]

dust. Once these discoveries are made, they need to be documented and 
shared throughout the industry.
    The diffusion of this innovation will occur much more rapidly and 
efficiently if this proposed study takes place. Effective strategies 
for using PDM information will be well documented and quickly shared 
throughout the coal industry. The alternative is to wait for the miners 
at each of the 482 actively producing coal mines in the U.S. to go 
through their own trial and error process of discovering how PDMs can 
and cannot be used to reduce dust exposure. The proposed study will 
help to significantly reduce the incidence of lung disease among coal 
miners, leading to improvements in their longevity and quality of life.
    The information for this study will be collected by conducting one-
on-one structured interviews with approximately 20 miners at each of 5 
mines located throughout the major coal producing regions of the U.S.
    This survey will last 2 years. There will be no cost to respondents 
except their time to participate. The total estimated annualized burden 
hours are 25.

                                       Estimate of Annualized Burden Table
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                                                                                     Number of    Average burden
                           Respondents                               Number of     responses per   per  response
                                                                    respondents     respondent      (in hours)
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Coal Miners.....................................................              50               1           30/60
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    Dated: August 18, 2005.
Joan F. Karr,
Acting Reports Clearance Officer, Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention.
[FR Doc. 05-16895 Filed 8-24-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P