Editing Mining (section)

==Safety==
[[File:Transporte por cable de minerales, Devnya, Bulgaria, 2016-05-27, DD 65.jpg|thumb|Mining transport in Devnya, Bulgaria]]
[[File:Coal miner spraying rock dust.jpg|thumb|right|A coal miner in [[West Virginia]] spraying rockdust to reduce the combustible fraction of coal dust in the air]]
{{Main|Mine safety}}Safety has long been a concern in the mining business, especially in sub-surface mining. The [[Courrières mine disaster]], Europe's worst [[mining accident]], involved the death of 1,099 miners in Northern [[France]] on March 10, 1906. This disaster was surpassed only by the [[Benxihu Colliery]] accident in [[China]] on April 26, 1942, which killed 1,549 miners.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.lemonde.fr/web/article/0,1-0@2-3226,36-749532,0.html|title=Marcel Barrois|date=March 10, 2006|newspaper=Le Monde|language=fr}}{{Dead link|date=December 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> While mining today is substantially safer than it was in previous decades, [[mining accident]]s still occur. Government figures indicate that 5,000 Chinese miners die in accidents each year, while other reports have suggested a figure as high as 20,000.<ref>"[https://web.archive.org/web/20070305132334/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1595235,00.html Where The Coal Is Stained With Blood]". ''Time''. March 2, 2007</ref> Between 1870 and 1920, in Queensland Australia, an increase in mining accidents lead to more safety measures surrounding the use of explosives for mining.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Wegner |first=Jan Helen |date=2010-06-22 |title=BLASTING OUT: EXPLOSIVES PRACTICES IN QUEENSLAND METALLIFEROUS MINES, 1870-1920: Blasting out |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-8446.2010.00301.x |journal=Australian Economic History Review |language=en |volume=50 |issue=2 |pages=193–208 |doi=10.1111/j.1467-8446.2010.00301.x}}</ref> Mining accidents continue worldwide, including accidents causing dozens of fatalities at a time such as the 2007 [[Ulyanovskaya Mine disaster]] in Russia, the [[2009 Heilongjiang mine explosion]] in China, and the 2010 [[Upper Big Branch Mine disaster]] in the United States. Mining has been identified by the [[National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health]] (NIOSH) as a priority industry sector in the [[National Occupational Research Agenda]] (NORA) to identify and provide intervention strategies regarding occupational health and safety issues.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nora/councils/mining/default.html|title=NORA Mining Sector Council {{!}} NIOSH {{!}} CDC|date=2017-10-24|website=www.cdc.gov|access-date=2018-02-22|archive-date=2019-06-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190616143603/https://www.cdc.gov/nora/councils/mining/default.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Mine Safety and Health Administration|Mining Safety and Health Administration]] (MSHA) was established in 1978 to "work to prevent death, illness, and injury from mining and promote safe and healthful workplaces for US miners."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.msha.gov/about/mission|title=Mission {{!}} Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA)|website=www.msha.gov|access-date=2018-07-19|archive-date=2018-06-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180614050520/https://www.msha.gov/about/mission|url-status=live}}</ref> Since its implementation in 1978, the number of miner fatalities has decreased from 242 miners in 1978 to 24 miners in 2019.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}

There are numerous [[occupational hazard]]s associated with mining, including exposure to [[rockdust]] which can lead to diseases such as [[silicosis]], [[asbestosis]], and [[pneumoconiosis]]. Gases in the mine can lead to [[asphyxia]]tion and could also be ignited. Mining equipment can generate considerable noise, putting workers at risk for [[hearing loss]]. [[Cave-in]]s, [[Rockfall|rock falls]], and exposure to excess heat are also known hazards. The current NIOSH Recommended Exposure Limit (REL) of noise is 85 dBA with a 3 dBA exchange rate and the MSHA Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) is 90 dBA with a 5 dBA exchange rate as an 8-hour time-weighted average. NIOSH has found that 25% of noise-exposed workers in Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction have hearing impairment.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Masterson|first1=Elizabeth A.|last2=Deddens|first2=James A.|last3=Themann|first3=Christa L.|last4=Bertke|first4=Stephen|last5=Calvert|first5=Geoffrey M.|date=April 2015|title=Trends in worker hearing loss by industry sector, 1981–2010|journal=American Journal of Industrial Medicine|volume=58|issue=4|pages=392–401|doi=10.1002/ajim.22429|issn=1097-0274|pmc=4557728|pmid=25690583}}</ref> The prevalence of hearing loss increased by 1% from 1991 to 2001 within these workers.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}

Noise studies have been conducted in several mining environments. Stageloaders (84-102 dBA), shearers (85-99 dBA), auxiliary fans (84–120 dBA), continuous mining machines (78–109 dBA), and roof bolters (92–103 dBA) represent some of the noisiest equipment in underground [[Coal mining|coal mines]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/mining/works/coversheet1107.html|title=Summary of Longwall and Continuous Miner Section Noise Studies in Underground Coal Mines|website=www.cdc.gov|date=25 October 2016|access-date=2018-07-19|archive-date=2018-06-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180627020721/https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/mining/works/coversheet1107.html|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Dragline excavator|Dragline]] oilers, dozer operators, and welders using air arcing were occupations with the highest noise exposures among surface coal miners.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/nioshtic-2/20025335.html|title=Worker exposure and equipment noise in large surface coal mines.|website=www.cdc.gov|access-date=2018-07-19|archive-date=2018-07-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180719054647/https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/nioshtic-2/20025335.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Coal mines had the highest hearing loss injury likelihood.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Sun|first1=Kan|last2=Azman|first2=Amanda S.|date=March 2018|title=Evaluating hearing loss risks in the mining industry through MSHA citations|journal=Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene|volume=15|issue=3|pages=246–62|doi=10.1080/15459624.2017.1412584|issn=1545-9632|pmc=5848488|pmid=29200378|bibcode=2018JOEH...15..246S }}</ref>