The stories that come out of Utah are absolutely heartbreaking. The six miners that were lost in Crandall Canyon has been devastating to their families, the state of Utah and the entire nation. The three rescue workers killed last week added to the misery. With all the tragedy, you would think that everyone would be on board to help solve the problems that contribute to the deaths of multiple miners every year. Yet, that just isn't the case.
The owner of Crandall Canyon is a wealthy financial supporter of the Bush Administration and the man that runs the U.S. Mine Safety office has been a mine owner himself. The revolving door policy in Washington applies here too, and it has done nothing to help those that risk their lives mining our natural resources. It would be great to see action from the White House, let alone in the halls of Congress, but there are only a few that speak out, like AFL-CIO chief John Sweeney.
From The Huffington Post:
The disaster still unfolding at the Crandall Canyon mine did not have to happen. It was preventable--as were the deaths of 12 coal miners last year in the Sago Mine in West Virginia. As have been many, many more deaths of workers in America's coal mines and factories, fishing vessels, offices and construction sites.
Safety concerns about the Crandall Canyon mine surfaced months ago, and safety experts warned of particular dangers in the "retreat mining" technique used there after it was approved by the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration. In retreat mining, coalminers essentially pull out roof-supporting pillars of coal as they work their way out of the mine. The retreat mining plan at Crandall Canyon, says United Mine Workers of America President Cecil Roberts, "appears to have been flawed, to say the least. In our opinion, that plan should never have been approved."
No one should be surprised it was approved, though. The Bush administration has been systematically dismantling and cutting funding for workplace safety rules and oversight since it came into office.
Every day in 2005 (the most recent data available), 16 workers died on the job and 12,000 were made sick--and that doesn't include the occupational diseases that kill 50,000 to 60,000 more workers each year. In many if not most of these cases, one of two things occurred: An employer disregarded the law, or the law wasn't strong enough to protect workers.
Making a mockery of mining laws is standard operating procedure in the business. No one seems to care enough to do anything about it in Washington, so the disregard for safety continues.
Sure, it isn't as bad as the conditions in, say China, but this is America and we need to be an example for the world, not the other way around. When the tragedy began unfolding, mine owner representatives walked out of a Congressional Committee hearing, even though members of Congress wanted them to stay. This isn't just contempt for Congress, it is a slap in the face to America.
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