Coal remains one of the principal sources of energy for the United States, and the nation has been a world leader in coal production for more than 100 years. According to U.S. Energy Information Administration projections to 2050, coal is expected to be an important energy resource for the United States. Additionally, metallurgical coal used in steel production remains an important national commodity. However, coal production, like all other conventional mining activities, creates dust in the workplace. Respirable coal mine dust (RCMD) comprises the size fraction of airborne particles in underground mines that can be inhaled by miners and deposited in the distal airways and gas-exchange region of the lung. Occupational exposure to RCMD has long been associated with lung diseases common to the coal mining industry, including coal workers' pneumoconiosis, also known as “black lung disease.”

Monitoring and Sampling Approaches to Assess Underground Coal Mine Dust Exposures compares the monitoring technologies and sampling protocols currently used or required by the United States, and in similarly industrialized countries for the control of RCMD exposure in underground coal mines. This report assesses the effects of rock dust mixtures and their application on RCMD measurements, and the efficacy of current monitoring technologies and sampling approaches. It also offers science-based conclusions regarding optimal monitoring and sampling strategies to aid mine operators' decision making related to reducing RCMD exposure to miners in underground coal mines.

Contents

• The National Academies of SCIENCES • ENGINEERING • MEDICINE
• COMMITTEE ON THE STUDY OF THE CONTROL OF RESPIRABLE COAL MINE DUST EXPOSURE IN UNDERGROUND MINES
• BOARD ON EARTH SCIENCES AND RESOURCES
• BOARD ON ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES AND TOXICOLOGY
• BOARD ON HEALTH SCIENCES POLICY
• Acknowledgments
• Preface
• Abbreviations
• Summary
  • THE COMMITTEE'S STUDY
  • TRENDS IN DISEASE EPIDEMIOLOGY AND MINING PRACTICES
  • EFFICACY OF CURRENT MONITORING AND SAMPLING IN UNDERGROUND MINES IN THE UNITED STATES
  • OPTIMAL MONITORING AND SAMPLING STRATEGIES
  • MONITORING AND SAMPLING PRACTICES USED IN DIFFERENT INDUSTRIALIZED COUNTRIES
  • EFFECTS OF ROCK DUSTING ON RCMD MEASUREMENTS
  • RECOMMENDATIONS
  • IN CONCLUSION
• 1. Introduction
  • COMMITTEE'S STATEMENT OF TASK
  • RESPIRABLE COAL MINE DUST: CONSTITUENTS AND SOURCES
  • OVERVIEW OF UNDERGROUND COAL MINING METHODS AND JOB DUTIES
  • TOXICITY AND DISEASES ASSOCIATED WITH COAL MINE DUST EXPOSURE
  • RECENT TRENDS IN COAL MINE DUST LUNG DISEASES AND IN MINING
  • EARLY REGULATORY EFFORTS AND PAST RECOMMENDATIONS
  • DUST CONTROL MEASURES
  • THE 2014 DUST RULE
  • CONCLUSION
  • ORGANIZATION OF THE REPORT
  • REFERENCES
• 2. Effects of Rock Dust Applications on Coal Mine Dust Measurements
  • ROCK DUST TECHNOLOGY AND PRACTICES
  • PARTICLE SIZE DISTRIBUTIONS OF ROCK DUST
  • SILICA CONTENT OF ROCK DUST
  • POTENTIAL HEALTH EFFECTS OF ROCK DUST EXPOSURE
  • CONCLUSIONS
  • REFERENCES
• 3. Exposure Monitoring and Sampling Approaches Used in Different Industrialized Countries
  • MONITORING AND SAMPLING APPROACHES REQURIED IN SELECTED COUNTRIES
  • A COMPARISON OF REQUIREMENTS
  • CONCLUSIONS
  • REFERENCES
• 4. Efficacy of Current Monitoring Technologies and Sampling Approaches
  • DETERMINE COMPLIANCE WITH RCMD STANDARDS FOR DESIGNATED OCCUPATIONS ON SAMPLED SHIFTS
  • INFORM WORKERS IN DESIGNATED OCCUPATIONS OF A NEED TO CHANGE BEHAVIOR IN RESPONSE TO DUST CONCENTRATION READINGS WHILE CONDUCTING TASKS
  • PROVIDE INFORMATION TO MINE OPERATORS FOR ADDRESSING DUST ISSUES THROUGH PROCESS CONTROL
  • DETERMINE SAMPLE VARIABILITY FOR DESIGNATED AREAS AND DESIGNATED OCCUPATIONS
  • PROVIDE INFORMATION ON CRYSTALLINE SILICA EXPOSURE FOR DESIGNATED OCCUPATIONS
  • CONCLUSIONS
  • REFERENCES
• 5. Optimizing Monitoring and Sampling Strategies
  • AN IDEAL MONITORING AND SAMPLING PROGRAM
  • OPTIMAL MONITORING AND SAMPLING STRATEGIES
  • TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT NEEDS
  • CONCLUSIONS
  • REFERENCES
• 6. Overall Conclusions and Recommendations
  • TRENDS IN DISEASE EPIDEMIOLOGY AND MINING PRACTICES
  • EFFICACY OF CURRENT MONITORING AND SAMPLING IN UNDERGROUND MINES IN THE UNITED STATES
  • OPTIMAL MONITORING AND SAMPLING STRATEGIES TO AID MINE OPERATORS' DECISION MAKING
  • EFFECTS OF ROCK DUSTING ON RCMD MEASUREMENTS
  • SAMPLING AND MONITORING PRACTICES USED IN DIFFERENT INDUSTRIALIZED COUNTRIES
  • RECOMMENDATIONS
• APPENDIXES
  • Appendix A. Statement of Task
  • Appendix B. Committee Member Biosketches
  • Appendix C. Open-Session Meeting Agendas
  • Appendix D. Glossary
  • Appendix E. Coal Mining in the United States
  • Appendix F. Underground Coal Mining Methods and Engineering Dust Controls
  • Appendix G. Mandatory Airborne Dust Standards for U.S. Underground Coal Mines

Suggested citation:

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. Monitoring and Sampling Approaches to Assess Underground Coal Mine Dust Exposures. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: https:/doi.org/10.17226/25111.