Silica or SiO2 is a chemical compound of Silicon and Oxygen and is one of the most abundent substances in the Earth’s crust. Unfortunately for Mines and Miners it is very bad for us when we breath it into our lungs. There are several types of Silica but the one that miners need to protect themselves from is Respirable Crystalline Silica. On April 16, 2024 the federal government’s Mine Safety and Health Administration or MSHA issued a controvesial new regulation lowering the permissable exposure limit of repirable crystalline cilica to 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air for an 8-hour shift.
This new rule received an unprecidented amount of pushback from the mining industry as it was much more strict than previous regulations. This new standard will require routine chest x-rays of miners, dust sampling of all work areas in the mine and the introduction of engineering, administration and PPE controls to minimize miners exposures. With this new regulation IC&T one of the leading MSHA training company’s in the country is offering assistance to mines in compliance with this new standard. Miner operators have until July 2025 to comply in the nation’s coal mines and July of 2026 in all other mines. If you need assistance with air sampling and compliance with this new standard please give us a call and we will be happy to help your company develop a program to come into compliance and protect your miners.