In the matter of Petition for Modification
Chestnut Coal Company
No. 10 Slope
I.D. No. 36-07059 Docket No. M-2002-034-C 30 CFR 75.1312(a)
PROPOSED ORDER OF DISMISSAL
On March 20, 2002, a petition was filed seeking a modification of the application of 30 CFR 75.1312(a) to Petitioner's No. 10 Slope, located in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania. The Petitioner alleges that application of this standard will result in a diminution of safety to the miners and that the alternative method proposed in the petition will at all times guarantee no less than the same measure of protection afforded by the standard.
MSHA personnel conducted an investigation of the petition and filed a report of their findings and recommendations with the Administrator for Coal Mine Safety and Health. MSHA reviewed the applicable provisions of the Mine Act, the regulations and legislative history and concluded that a petition for modification for 30 CFR 75.1312(a) was not needed.
The standard limits the quantity of explosives kept in underground magazines to no more than is needed for 48 hours of use. This limit varies at each mine according to the amount of explosives used in the operation. The 48 hours is not a time limit for storage underground which requires that explosives be removed after 48 hours.
Instead it is a quantity limit on the volume of explosives stored underground, the quantity being that amount which would normally be used in the operation over 48 hours.
Therefore, pursuant to the authority delegated by the Secretary of Labor to the Administrator for Coal Mine Safety and Health, Chestnut Coal Company's, petition for modification of 30 CFR 75.1312(a) to its No. 10 Slope Mine is dismissed without prejudice.
Any party to this action desiring a hearing on this matter must file in accordance with 30 CFR 44 within 30 days. The request for hearing must be filed with the Administrator for Coal Mine Safety and Health, 1100 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, Virginia 22209-3939.
If a hearing is requested, the request shall contain a concise summary of position on the issues of fact or law desired to be raised by the party requesting the hearing, including specific objections to the proposed decision. A party other than Petitioner who has requested a hearing shall also comment upon all issues of fact or law presented in the petition, and any party to this action requesting a hearing may indicate a desired hearing site. If no request for a hearing is filed within 30 days after service thereof, the Order of Dismissal will become final.
Terry L. Bentley
Acting Chief, Division of Safety
Coal Mine Safety and Health