[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 48 (Tuesday, March 12, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8898-8900]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-04434]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Mine Safety and Health Administration


Petitions for Modification of Application of Existing Mandatory 
Safety Standard

AGENCY: Mine Safety and Health Administration, Labor.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice is a summary of petition for modification 
submitted to the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) by the 
parties listed below.

DATES: All comments on the petition must be received by MSHA's Office 
of Standards, Regulations, and Variances on or before April 11, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit your comments, identified by ``docket 
number'' on the subject line, by any of the following methods:
    1. Email: [email protected]. Include the docket number of the 
petition in the subject line of the message.
    2. Facsimile: 202-693-9441.
    3. Regular Mail or Hand Delivery: MSHA, Office of Standards, 
Regulations, and Variances, 201 12th Street South, Suite 4E401, 
Arlington, Virginia 22202-5452, Attention: Sheila McConnell, Director, 
Office of Standards, Regulations, and Variances. Persons delivering 
documents are required to check in at the receptionist's desk in Suite 
4E401. Individuals may inspect a copy of the petition and comments 
during normal business hours at the address listed above.
    MSHA will consider only comments postmarked by the U.S. Postal 
Service or proof of delivery from another delivery service such as UPS 
or Federal Express on or before the deadline for comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Barbara Barron, Office of Standards, 
Regulations, and Variances at 202-693-9447 (voice), 
[email protected] (email), or 202-693-9441 (fax). [These are not 
toll-free numbers.]

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 101(c) of the Federal Mine Safety 
and Health Act of 1977 and Title 30 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
Part 44 govern the application, processing, and disposition of 
petitions for modification.

I. Background

    Section 101(c) of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 
(Mine Act) allows the mine operator or representative of miners to file 
a petition to modify the application of any mandatory safety standard 
to a coal or other mine if the Secretary of Labor (Secretary) 
determines that:
    1. An alternative method of achieving the result of such standard 
exists which will at all times guarantee no less than the same measure 
of protection afforded the miners of such mine by such standard; or
    2. That the application of such standard to such mine will result 
in a diminution of safety to the miners in such mine.
    In addition, the regulations at 30 CFR 44.10 and 44.11 establish 
the requirements and procedures for filing petitions for modification.

II. Petitions for Modification

    Docket Number: M-2019-001-C.
    Petitioner: Rockwell Mining, LLC, 300 Kanawha Boulevard, East (ZIP 
25301), Post Office Box 273, Charleston, West Virginia 25321-0273.
    Mine: Matewan Tunnel Mine, MSHA I.D. No. 46-08610, located in Boone 
County, West Virginia.
    Regulation Affected: 30 CFR 75.1108(c) (Approved conveyor belts).
    Modification Request: The petitioner requests a modification of the 
existing standard to its overland coal belt that travels, in part, 
through the Matewan

[[Page 8899]]

Tunnel Mine (``Tunnel Mine''). The petitioner submits that a 
modification of the Part 14 belt standard is warranted because the 
unique layout of the mine and additional safety measures the petitioner 
will put in place will make the conveyor belt in the Tunnel Mine at 
least as safe as compliance with Part 14.
    The petitioner states that:
    (1) The Tunnel Mine is a straight, three-entry tunnel mine 
developed in 1998. The Tunnel Mine has been non-producing since 1998. 
At the time of development, the purpose was to provide an excavation to 
install a conveyor system to transport raw coal from Harris No. 1 Mine 
(Harris) to the Rocklick Preparation Plant (Rocklick) and transport 
clean coal back to the Norfolk Southern Railroad loadout at Harris. The 
Matewan Coal Seam was chosen due to its contiguous vertical position to 
each operation (Harris and Rocklick). The Matewan Seam has no previous 
mining history in this area due to poor quality and its low average 
seam height that is 33 inches thick requires 48 inches of outseam 
excavation to facilitate the conveyor system. The Tunnel Mine does not 
liberate any methane.
    (2) The Tunnel Mine consists of three entries developed on a 
straight course of 10,500 feet from outcrop to outcrop. The roof in the 
belt entry (center entry) is supported with 6-foot fully grouted bolts 
with T5 steel channel every row. Steel straps and 4-foot conventional 
bolts support the ribs. The final conveyor structure is offset in the 
entry to provide complete access along its entire length. Thus, the 
ventilation system will not likely be compromised by roof or rib 
integrity.
    (3) The 42-inch conveyor is 12,445 feet long and is powered by two 
separate drive installations on the surface at each end of the 
underground excavation (500 HP and 1,000 HP). The conveyor is designed 
to turn over on each end to maintain the material handling surface in 
an upward facing position. Both the top and bottom structure are 
troughed 35 degrees to provide simultaneous transportation capacity on 
the top and return portions of the belt. The conveyor uses special belt 
with steel cable carcass related at 1,900 pounds per inch of width 
(PIW). Traveling 680 feet per minute (FPM), the belt system has a 
carrying capacity of 1,000 tons per hour (TPH) on each belt (top and 
bottom) totaling 2,000 TPH. The installation was completed and 
commissioned for service in February 1999.
    (4) The conveyor belt inside the Tunnel Mine originally handled the 
production from longwall mines from Harris to Rocklick and back to the 
loadout. The Tunnel Mine currently only transports a fraction of its 
design capacity. The Tunnel Mine transports raw coal estimated at 4,000 
raw tons daily from two continuous miner sections in the Black Oak Mine 
to Rocklick without utilizing the return belt capacity.
    (a) The portal at the Preparation Plant side of the Tunnel Mine is 
known as the Rocklick Portal. The portal at the other end is known as 
the Harris Portal. The Tunnel Mine is ventilated from the Rocklick 
Portal with a 5.5-foot blowing fan with a 1,200 RPM speed, set to Blade 
Setting No. 5, producing 105,000 CFM of airflow.
    (b) At the Rocklick Portal, fresh air enters in the No. 1 entry and 
travels to the No. 11 crosscut and splits. A small portion of the air 
goes to entry Nos. 2 and 3 from crosscut No. 11 back to the Rocklick 
Portal. The remaining air flows to the Harris Portal from crosscuts 11 
to 75 in all three entries. The air in the Tunnel Mine is considered 
neutral.
    (c) The existing belt, which was installed sometime between 2005 
and 2007, is in excellent condition with little wear. There are no belt 
drives, tails, or dumping points on the underground portion of the belt 
flight. The belt runs one shift per day, for approximately 8 to 9 
hours. At the Harris Portal, an additional 1,250 feet of conveyor takes 
the belt to the Black Oak Mine surface loading point. At the Rocklick 
Portal, about 500 feet of conveyor belt takes the coal to the raw coal 
pile.
    (d) The Tunnel Mine has numerous safety features including:
    (i) The belt entry is separated by stopping lines on each side.
    (ii) Mandoors every 300 feet on each stopping line.
    (iii) Carbon Monoxide (CO) monitors every 1,000 feet.
    (iv) Conveyor belt alignment rollers every 1,000 feet.
    (v) Fire taps and hoses located every 300 feet.
    (vi) The belt is x-rayed annually to ensure the integrity of the 
existing belt.
    (vii) Two-way communications (pager phones) are located underground 
starting every 7 breaks throughout the mine. The control room operator 
at Rocklick monitors the communication system. Two-way wireless radios 
worn by the surface employee can communicate with the examiner 
underground.
    (viii) Graveled roadways.
    (ix) Emergency belt stop switches every 7 breaks.
    (x) No issued violations on the conveyor belt since May 19, 1998.
    (e) Certified examiners travel the belt entry on a 2-man ride to 
examine the belt once per shift and record those findings in required 
mine books.
    (f) The Tunnel Mine normally operates with only one miner 
underground while the belt is running. The examiners of the Tunnel Mine 
are a certified foreman and electrician. Examinations take about 1 hour 
per shift. When necessary, a certified miner helps with maintenance and 
other tasks in the mine.
    (g) There are no belt drives, tailpieces, or electric motors inside 
the Tunnel Mine. The belt only runs through the mine on conveyor 
structure and rollers.
    (h) The belt is approximately 1\1/2\ inches thick, 48 inches wide, 
and has steel cable imbedded in the belt. The belt at each end is 
turned over so that the coal side is always facing up on transport and 
return. This design greatly reduces any spillage and accumulations in 
the Tunnel Mine.
    (i) Self-Contained Self-Rescuer Caches are stored at breaks 14, 28, 
37, 42, 56, and 70. There are also emergency barricade materials kept 
in the No. 3 entry.
    (j) The Tunnel Mine has emergency lifelines throughout. Further, it 
has significant fire detection and firefighting devices in the mine 
that include:

--A waterline with fire hoses and nozzles every 300 feet.
--A beltline that has 13 smoke detection and carbon monoxide (CO) 
sensors approximately every 5 to 6 breaks. The CO sensors are currently 
set to `low alarm' at 5 ppm and `high alarm' at 10 ppm, far below 
levels that present any danger to miners. The CO monitoring system will 
be programmed to shut off the belt at `high alarm'.
--A 2-man ride used to examine the belt that has self-rescuers and 
separate fire extinguishers.

    (k) The alternative to using the Tunnel Mine belt will be to truck 
Black Oak Mine's coal to Rocklick. This will significantly increase the 
number of trucks on Route 85 in Boone County between Black Oak and the 
Rocklick Preparation Plant. The increase in trucks going in and out of 
the Rocklick Preparation Plant will also add congestion to the load-out 
traffic flow.
    (l) Rockwell has not experienced any safety issues with the 
conveyor belt in the Tunnel Mine. Rockwell mining has never experienced 
any fire related issues on the conveyor belt at the Tunnel Mine or 
experienced any significant issues with rollers on the belt in the 
Tunnel Mine beyond routine maintenance.

[[Page 8900]]

    (m) Based on chemical laboratory analysis, the belt has been 
confirmed to be Part 18 compliant. The belt, however, has not been 
tested for Part 14 compliance due to Rockwell Mining's difficulty in 
finding an appropriate testing facility.
    (5) Rockwell Mining has investigated and determined an alternative 
method of achieving the desired result of Part 14, which is the 
reduction of potential belt fires and exposure to fire hazards.
    The petitioner proposes the following alternative method:

--Prior to a qualified person entering the mine, the CO system will be 
monitored for two hours for any sign of combustion. At the end of coal 
transport each day, the CO system will be monitored for 4 hours for any 
signs of combustion (e.g., CO or smoke detection by CO monitors on the 
belt).
--A daily functional (bump) test of at least one sensor will be 
conducted for CO in addition to the weekly functional test required 
under 30 CFR 75.1103-8. A different sensor will be bump tested each 
day. In addition, CO monitors will be installed every 300 feet, instead 
of the 1,000 feet required by current law.
--Training for miners on location of Part 18 belt and interim safety 
measures being taken herein and revised training on the requirements of 
30 CFR 75.1502, as appropriate.
--An immediate functional test of the fire suppression system along 
with additional tests conducted weekly. A daily visual inspection of 
all fire suppression systems will be conducted by a qualified person.
--Install a ``waterwall system'' every 900 feet, which will be tapped 
into the CO monitoring system. The waterwall will activate at 50 ppm of 
CO. The waterwall will provide 50 psi and 45 GPM of water curtain from 
roof to floor and rib to rib.
--Cameras will be installed every 1,000 feet to allow continuous visual 
monitoring of the belt configuration including before examiners enter 
the mine.
--Existing heat sensors will be utilized every 125 feet to continually 
monitor the beltline to detect potential heat sources.
--The belt will be cleared of coal and during examination will run 
empty. Examinations generally take less than 1 hour with the belt 
running approximately 8 to 9 hours a day.
--All examiners are trained and will continue to be trained monthly on 
the locations and use of escapeways, mandoors, SCSR caches, lifelines, 
and fire suppression and fire-fighting equipment in the mine.
--No motors or electrical equipment will be added and no changes will 
be made to the belt configuration or layout that would add motors or 
belt drives underground while this petition for modification is in 
effect.
--The examiner will enter the mine from the Harris Portal, the downwind 
side so that the examiner is traveling towards the fan. From entries 75 
to 11, the examiner will be traveling into fresh air. From crosscut No. 
11 to the Rocklick Portal, fresh air will come from behind the examiner 
for those 11 breaks.
--The examiners will be trained to immediately notify the dispatcher in 
the event of CO detection. Radio contact is established throughout the 
Tunnel Mine. Should a fire be encountered and not extinguished 
according to applicable law, the examiner will withdraw from the Tunnel 
Mine and notify MSHA as required under applicable law.
--If the CO system is down, the belt will not operate until necessary 
repairs have been made to the CO system.
--As the belt is repaired and sections replaced, Part 14 belt will be 
used. In 2019, about 2,000 feet of the belt are expected to be 
replaced.
--While rock-dusting and most maintenance is conducted on the beltline, 
the belt will not be in operation.
--Petitioner will continue annual x-ray examinations.
--All necessary repair and replacement belt will be Part 14 compliant.

    The petitioner asserts that these alternative methods will 
guarantee no less than the same measure of protection from the 
potential hazards for which 30 CFR 75.1108(c) was intended to guard 
against.

Sheila McConnell,
Director, Office of Standards, Regulations, and Variances.
[FR Doc. 2019-04434 Filed 3-11-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4520-43-P