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Work-related deaths are a persistent occupational health issue that can be prevented. However, prevention opportunities can be hampered by a lack of adequate public health resources. The Western States Occupational Network (WestON) is a network of federal, state, and local occupational health professionals that includes a 19-state region of the United States. To encourage public health collaboration, WestON partners examined work-related fatalities within the region. Fatality counts (numerators) were obtained from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries restricted-access research files for all workers ages ≥15 years and fatally injured in WestON states from 2011 through 2017. Estimates of full-time equivalent hours worked (FTE) (denominators) were retrieved from the BLS Current Population Survey. Annual average fatality rates were calculated as number of fatalities per 100,000 FTE over the study period. Rates were stratified by state, select demographics, industry sector, and event/exposure types. Pearson chi-squared tests and rate ratios with 95% confidence probability limits were used to assess rate differences. All analyses were conducted using SAS v.9.4. From 2011 through 2017, the annual average overall occupational fatality rate for the WestON region was 3.5 fatalities per 100,000 FTE, comparable to the overall U.S. fatality rate. Male workers had a fatality rate almost 10 times higher than female workers in the region. Fatality rates increased with successive age groups. Alaska and New Mexico had significantly higher fatality rates for all racial/ethnic groups compared to respective regional rates. Wyoming, North Dakota, and Montana had the three highest occupational fatality rates among foreign-born workers. Agriculture/forestry/fishing, mining/oil/gas extraction, and transportation/warehousing/utilities were industry sector groups with the three highest fatality rates regionally. Transportation-related incidents were the most frequent event type associated with occupational fatalities for all 19 states. Work-related fatalities are a crosscutting occupational public health priority. This analysis can be an impetus for collaborative multistate initiatives among a dynamic and varied occupational public health network to better meet the needs of a rapidly changing workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Among the first 20 high-priority chemical substances selected by USEPA to undergo risk evaluation as part of the Toxic Substances Control Act, as amended by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act of 2016 is 1,3-butadiene (1,3-BD). Because much of the literature related to occupational exposure to 1,3-BD is associated with the use of the substance in synthetic rubber production and few data have been published for exposures to 1,3-BD manufacturing workers, existing industrial hygiene data collected at facilities where the substance is manufactured or processed as a reactant were compiled and analyzed. The dataset was comprised of personal air samples collected between 2010 and 2019 at facilities located throughout the United States and was compiled into a single database using a uniform data collection template. Data designated by the companies as full-shift were stratified by job group and one of three operational conditions of the workplace: routine, turnaround, and non-routine. Data designated by the companies as short-term and task-level were stratified by task description, sample duration, and operational condition. The final aggregated database contained a total of 5,676 full-shift personal samples. Mean concentrations of 1,3-BD for the job groups ranged from 0.012 ppm to 0.16 ppm. High-end estimates of 1,3-BD air concentrations for the job groups under routine operations ranged from 0.014 ppm to 0.23 ppm. The aggregated database also included 1,063 short-term and task-level personal samples. For short-term samples (< =15 min), mean concentrations ranged from 0.49 ppm to 3.9 ppm, with the highest concentrations observed for the cleaning and maintaining equipment tasks. For task samples with durations greater than 15 min, mean concentrations ranged from 0.49 to 3.6 ppm, with the highest concentrations observed for the unloading and loading task. In addition to the personal air sampling records, information on the use of PPE during various tasks was compiled and analyzed. This data set provides robust quantitative air concentration data and exposure control information for which occupational exposures to 1,3-BD in the Manufacturing and Processing as a Reactant condition of use can be assessed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) continues to be a pervasive problem for the nation's workforce, particularly the nation's mining personnel. As one of the leading health and safety organizations in the world, the National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety (NIOSH) in Pittsburgh maintains a Hearing Loss Prevention Program (HLPP) to conduct research to reduce NIHL loss among the nation's miners. This document provides a brief overview of this HLPP, describing some of the research techniques involved in the development of engineering noise controls, methods for the development of administrative noise controls, and some of the products available to the public to protect the nation's workers hearing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing research on racial/ethnic differences in stress and coping is limited by small samples, single-item measures, and lack of inclusion of Mexican Americans. We address these gaps by analyzing data from the Texas City Stress and Health Study, a cross-sectional sample of Black (N = 257), White (N = 304), US-born (N = 689), and foreign-born (N = 749) Mexican Americans residing in proximity to a petrochemical complex. We compared active and avoidant coping by race/ethnicity and explored multivariable associations between coping and perceived stress. Black and foreign-born Mexican American respondents had the highest stressor exposure yet displayed different patterns of coping and perceived stress patterns. Active coping may be particularly effective for African Americans but may not offset extreme stress disparities. For Mexican Americans, the lack of association between coping and stress underscores the need for more work focused on the culturally diverse coping experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We developed an opioid hazard awareness module for inclusion in required miner safety refresher training. The module was disseminated throughout the United States and post-training surveys showed improved knowledge and positive response to the training. Clinicians can improve care of high-risk worker patients by recommending employer support for such training. Objective: In response to elevated risk factors, an opioid hazard awareness training for the sand, stone, and gravel mining sector was developed and embedded in annual safety training. Methods: After positive results from a prior study among Massachusetts workers, a revised training was disseminated across the United States. Two hundred post-training surveys were obtained and compared with results from the Massachusetts cohort. Results: Participants' knowledge about opioid-based medications, confidence in talking to a doctor about opioids and/or to a coworker about their own use of opioids, and ability to refer struggling coworkers to resources improved. Massachusetts respondents had slightly more favorable responses. Both cohorts had strong positive views of the training. Conclusions: These results highlight the feasibility and effectiveness of opioid hazard prevention training for a high-risk worker population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors discuss two articles in the issue which showed how California's oil and gas development excessively exposes persistently marginalized populations to preventable health relevant hazards. Topics include evidence that African American communities are particularly affected, the health protection potential offered by California's regulatory measures compared to any other state, and examples of where a precautionary health-protective policy for oil and gas development was implemented.

The mining industry plays a critical role in the U.S. economy, with active mines in every state producing materials such as those used to construct houses and roads, make medicines, and manufacture cars and electronics. Throughout its history, mining has been a male-dominated industry. Recent estimates indicate that between 10% and 17% of miners are women. Previous occupational safety and health (OSH) research has focused primarily on the male experience. In more recent years, the mining industry has engaged in efforts to increase workforce diversity through the recruitment and retention of women miners. To meet the needs of a diverse workforce, it is critically important to identify OSH concerns that are unique to populations that have been understudied and to develop work-related policies and practices that improve their work experiences and health outcomes. The purpose of this article is to describe the specific OSH challenges women as miners face and to discuss how the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's (NIOSH) Mining Program is situated to address these challenges through its Mining Program Strategic Plan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Export activity from the southern United States has outpaced exports from the US at large, in addition to exceeding growth in overall southern economic output. • Southern export activities have been spatially uneven and shown signs of volatility, indicating heterogeneous evolutionary paths. • Many southern states continue to serve longtime export partners, markets, yet the export concentration in the top markets has largely diminished over the past two decades. The southern United States has seen explosive economic growth over the past several decades. One component of this growth has entailed rapid (and often widely varying) increases in goods-related exports, with overall growth numbers that have exceeded the US at large in addition to eclipsing overall southern economic output. However, has this growth in internationalization been shared across the region and moreover, do southern states serve similar export markets? Within the contexts of evolutionary economic geography and research on the geographies of exporting, this paper examines the trajectories of goods-related exports across the southern US, particularly in relation to recent shifts in the global economy including during the pandemic. The analyses reveal that export growth and performance are largely uneven in spatial terms, yet many states share leading export markets and also show signs of less dependence on dominant markets. On balance, exports appear to be tied to large, branch-plant production or related to extractive industries. The paper concludes with discussions on whether exports have been beneficial to the region and possible futures for exporting across the South in light of evolutionary changes in globalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advent of new sensing technologies and robust field-deployable analyzers, monitoring approaches can now generate valuable hazard information directly in the workplace. This is the case for monitoring respirable dust and respirable crystalline silica concentration levels. Estimating the quartz amount of a respirable dust sample by nondestructive analysis can be carried out using portable Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) units. Real-time respirable dust monitors, combined with small video cameras, allow advanced assessments using the Helmet-CAM methodology. These two field-based monitoring approaches, developed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), have been trialed in a sandstone quarry. Twenty-six Helmet-CAM sessions were conducted, and forty-one dust samples were collected around the quarry and analyzed on-site during two events. The generated data generated were used to characterize concentration levels for the monitored areas and workers, to identify good practices, and to illustrate activities that could be improved with additional engineered control technologies. Laboratory analysis of the collected samples complemented the field finding and provided an assessment of the performance of the field-based techniques. Only a fraction of the real-time respirable dust monitoring sessions data could be corrected with laboratory analysis. The average correction factor ratio was 5.0. Nevertheless, Helmet-CAM results provided valuable information for each session. The field-based quartz monitoring approach overestimated the concentration by a factor of 1.8, but it successfully assessed the quartz concentration trends in the quarry. The data collected could be used for the determination of a quarry calibration factor for future events. The quartz content in the dust was found to vary from 14% to 100%, and this indicates the need for multiple techniques in the characterization of respirable dust and quartz concentration and exposure. Overall, this study reports the importance of the adoption of field-based monitoring techniques when combined with a proper understanding and knowledge of the capabilities and limitations of each technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives This study: (i) assessed the relationship between noise exposure and injury risk, comprehensively adjusting for individual factors, psychosocial stressors, and organizational influences; (ii) determined the relative importance of noise on injuries; (iii) estimated the lowest observed adverse effect level (LOAEL) of noise on injury risk to determine the threshold of noise considered hazardous to injuries; and (iv) quantified the fraction of injuries that could be attributed to hazardous noise exposure. Methods In this cross-sectional study at 10 US surface mine sites, traditional mixed effects, Poisson regression, and boosted regression tree (BRT) models were run on the number of reported work-related injuries in the last year. The LOAEL of noise on injuries was identified by estimating the percent increase in work-related injuries at different thresholds of noise exposure using a counterfactual estimator through the BRT model. A population attributable fraction (PAF) was quantified with this counterfactual estimator to predict reductions in injuries at the LOAEL. Results Among 18 predictors of work-related injuries, mine site, perceived job safety, age, and sleepiness were the most important predictors. Occupational noise exposure was the seventh most important predictor. The LOAEL of noise for work-related injuries was a full-shift exposure of 88 dBA. Exposure ≥88 dBA was attributed to 20.3% (95% CI: 11.2%, 29.3%) of reported work-related injuries in the last year among the participants. Conclusions This study further supports hypotheses of a dose–response relationship between occupational noise exposure and work-related injuries, and suggests that exposures ≥88 dBA may increase injury risk in mining. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the relationship between mining practices in Central Appalachia and opioid use. Central Appalachia, known for coal mining, has one of the highest rates of opioid use in the U.S. Of particular interest is Mountaintop Removal Mining (MTR). MTR is a form of surface mining that requires clearcutting the mountain's forest before detonating explosives to reveal a coal vein. The vein reveals coal that would not have been accessible using traditional underground mining methods. MTR has been shown to be connected to many adverse health effects, including increased rates of cancer, serious illness, and substance abuse related hospitalizations. The researchers of this study hypothesize that the adverse health effects of MTR may influence opioid abuse. The results of this study revealed a relationship between mining practices in Central Appalachian counties and opioid-related hospital discharge rates and prescription rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous health and safety hazards exist at U.S. onshore oil and gas extraction worksites. Higher fatal injury rates have been reported among drilling and servicing companies, which are more likely to employ workers in construction and extraction occupations, compared to operators that employ more workers in management and office and administrative support roles. However, there is little information describing the extent to which workers encounter these hazards, are provided hazard mitigation strategies by their employers, or use personal protective equipment (PPE). A cross-sectional survey of 472 U.S. oil and gas extraction workers was conducted to identify and characterize factors related to on-the-job fatalities, injuries, and illnesses and determine workers' health and safety concerns. Workers were employed by servicing companies (271/472, 57.4%), drilling contractors (106/472, 22.5%), and operators (95/472, 20.1%). The likelihood of contact with hazardous substances varied by substance and company type. Drilling and servicing employees had significantly higher odds of self-reported contact with pipe dope (ORdrilling = 10.07, 95% CI: 1.74–63.64; ORservicing = 5.95, 95% CI: 2.18–18.34), diesel exhaust (ORdrilling = 2.28, 95% CI: 1.15–5.05; ORservicing = 4.93, 95% CI: 2.73–10.32), and drilling mud (ORdrilling = 24.36, 95% CI: 4.45–144.69; ORservicing = 3.48, 95% CI: 1.24–12.20), compared to operators. Safety policies, programs, and trainings were commonly reported by workers, although substance-specific training (e.g., respirable crystalline silica hazards) was less common. Differences in self-reported employer PPE requirements and worker use of PPE when needed or required for safety highlight a need for novel strategies to improve the use of PPE. Overall, this study highlights differences in work conditions by company type and uncovers gaps in employer administrative controls and PPE use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Despite reductions in exposure for workers and the general public, radon remains a leading cause of lung cancer. Prior studies of underground miners depended heavily upon information on deaths among miners employed in the early years of mine operations when exposures were high and tended to be poorly estimated. OBJECTIVES: To strengthen the basis for radiation protection, we report on the follow-up of workers employed in the later periods of mine operations for whom we have more accurate exposure information and for whom exposures tended to be accrued at intensities that are more comparable to contemporary settings. METHODS: We conducted a pooled analysis of cohort studies of lung cancer mortality among 57,873 male uranium miners in Canada, Czech Republic, France, Germany, and the United States, who were first employed in 1960 or later (thereby excluding miners employed during the periods of highest exposure and focusing on miners who tend to have higher quality assessments of radon progeny exposures). We derived estimates of excess relative rate per 100 working level months (ERR/100 WLM) for mortality from lung cancer. RESULTS: The analysis included 1:9 million person-years of observation and 1,217 deaths due to lung cancer. The relative rate of lung cancer increased in a linear fashion with cumulative exposure to radon progeny (ERR/100 WLM = 1.33; 95% CI: 0.89, 1.88). The association was modified by attained age, age at exposure, and annual exposure rate; for attained ages <55 y, the ERR/100 WLM was 8.38 (95% CI: 3.30, 18.99) among miners who were exposed at =35 years of age and at annual exposure rates of <0.5 working levels. This association decreased with older attained ages, younger ages at exposure, and higher exposure rates. DISCUSSION: Estimates of association between radon progeny exposure and lung cancer mortality among relatively contemporary miners are coherent with estimates used to inform current protection guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article comments on an analyses of lung cancer risk from the Diesel Exhaust in Miners Study (DEMS) II. It considers the public health implications worldwide of the categorization of diesel exhaust exposure as a human carcinogen. It discusses the consistency of this study with the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's documentation of lung cancer and other human health and mortality risks to miners resulting from diesel exhaust exposure

This paper analyzes simultaneous strikes during the first half of the 20th century in North America. The transformation of production in copper, lead, zinc, and silver mining districts determined the formation of a working class that operated between Mexico and the United States. Therefore, the labor conflicts combined market circumstances and management-imposed homologation of work structures across firm divisions with the international coordination of miners. The paper describes the emergence, growth, and demise of a regional industrial system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To determine and compare the prevalence and odds of chronic diseases among ex- and current miners. Methods: Fourteen-year pooled data from the National Health Interview Survey between 2004 and 2017 were analyzed. Ex- and current miners ages 18 to 64 years were defined based on employment status at the time of National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) interview. We calculated age-adjusted prevalence rates and odds ratios of association of chronic diseases. The analysis was adjusted for respondent's age, sex, race, marital status, poverty-income ratio, health insurance, and smoking status. Results: Ex-miners have significantly increased prevalence of most chronic diseases. The age-adjusted prevalence and the adjusted odds of heart disease, cancer, hypertension, diabetes, and psychological stress were significantly higher among ex-miners as compared with current miners. Conclusions: Ex-miners have worse health outcomes that may persist for years after leaving the mining industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the post-Civil War expansion of capitalism in the U.S., particularly industrial enclosures in the South and West, by using the example of New York City businessman William E. Dodge and his company Phelps, Dodge, & Co. The company bought three hundred thousand acres of Georgia's pine barrens in 1868, land which had previously been used as commons by yeoman farmers. The company also was responsible for the dispossession of Apache Indians in Arizona to make way for its industrial mining endeavors, while being part of the beginning of focus of wage laborers efforts to regain power over repressive and unfair labor practices. The relationship between businessmen and the majority Republican Party are explored.

Occupational lung diseases such as coal worker's pneumoconiosis, often called black lung, are caused by exposures to respirable coal mine dust. Dust composition is increasingly understood as an important disease factor, and it can vary significantly depending on dust source materials and generation processes. For regulatory compliance purposes, the mass concentration and quartz percentage of respirable dust are monitored in U.S. coal mines, but the whole composition is not typically determined. Previous work has indicated that thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) can be used to apportion the respirable dust mass to three important component fractions (i.e., coal, non-carbonate minerals, and carbonate), which should generally correlate with three different dust sources (i.e., coal strata, rock strata, and limestone rock dusting products being applied in the mine). However, a primary shortcoming of that previous work was use of fibrous sampling filters, which limited dust recovery and thus analytical accuracy. Here, an improved TGA application is presented using smooth polycarbonate filters. Based on experiments with laboratory-generated dust samples (masses ranging between 95–1,319 µg), the TGA-derived mass fractions (reported as percentage values) for all three components were found to generally be within ±10% of expected values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We evaluated the burden associated with nonfatal slip, trip, and fall incidents. • The focus of the work was surface stone, sand, and gravel mines in the U.S. • The incidence rate was 62 per 10,000 full-time equivalent employees per year. • Incidents led to approximately 23,800 total days lost per year. • The estimated cost of the incidents was approximately $17.5 million per year. • In addition, assessed violations cost the industry approximately $3 million per year. Slips, trips, and falls (STFs) pose a significant financial burden to employers and account for over 33% of the total nonfatal workers' compensation cost in the United States. Previous analyses documenting the burden of STF incidents in the mining industry have focused on occupational fatalities or STFs during equipment ingress, egress. There is limited information on the burden of nonfatal STF incidents in the mining industry and most of it is outdated. Hence, to increase awareness and highlight the importance of STFs in the mining industry, this analysis documents the burden associated with nonfatal STF incidents at surface stone, sand, and gravel (SSG) mines from 2008 through 2017. In this time frame, nonfatal STF incidents occurred at a rate of 62 per 10,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees per year. Pits had a higher prevalence of injuries, but plants had a higher incidence rate. In addition, nonfatal STF incidents at surface SSG mines led to approximately 23,800 total days lost per year with an estimated cost to the mining industry of $17.5 million per year. Assessed violations that are not related to reported injuries but are related to STF hazards identified during Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) inspections cost the mining industry approximately $3 million per year from 2013 through 2017. Based on the data analyzed in this study, falls to the lower level pose a higher burden in terms of cost; however, falls to the same level have a higher number of incidents and incidence rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Smoking is a potential confounder in studies of workplace exposures and smoking-related disease, but little data exist to quantitatively adjust for smoking in statistical models. Methods: We estimated smoking prevalence trends between 1950 and 1999 for 12,299 female and 43,307 male hourly and salaried petrochemical workers using company physical examination data. Results: Nearly half of hourly male and female employees smoked during the study period, compared with 38% of salaried males and 29% of females. Smoking prevalence in the 1950s reached 80% and 66% among female and male hourly workers, respectively, significantly higher than the US general population. Conclusions: As hourly workers typically comprise higher exposure groups and expected case counts are typically generated from the US general population, biased risk estimates may result from standardized mortality ratio analyses if smoking rate differences are not accounted for. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the impact of the Colorado Gold Rush of 1859 and subsequent gold mining efforts in that state on the development of U.S. mining laws in general. Regulations for Colorado mining districts are outlined by the author. Various trials associated with the operation and opening of certain Colorado mines are then analyzed.

The article presents information on the history of the Southwestern United States and Mexico during the pre-Hispanic era, outlining the trading infrastructure, mining, and warfare in the region up to the 16th century. Archaeological evidence is cited to describe the histories of each element of Mesoamerican civilization before Western colonization, outlining the existence of established trade routes, the extent of mining and agricultural systems, and investigation into patterns of warfare between rival indigenous societies.

Examines the role of the U.S. Bureau of Mines (BOM) in shaping the mining industry in the Old West. Development of an extensive system of experiment stations designed to help the Western mining industry overcome technical obstacles; Collaboration between the American Mining Congress and the BOM in the development of a stable and technically efficient corporate system of Western hard-rock mining; Expansion of the scope of the BOM; Importance of Western mining to the economy; Value of Western silver and gold for bullion and for use in jewelry, tableware and other luxury items; Significance of copper, lead and zinc from Western mines for the American industrialization.

Discusses the effects of hardrock mining on the visual environment of the Western United States. Characteristic features of the West that is associated with the exploitation of metal ores; Historical and cultural roots of Western mining; Classification of hardrock mining landscapes; Landscape effects of mining; Sequential development of mining landscapes; Mining-related topography.

Compares the Australian and Californian gold rushes in the 1859s. Social and national consequences of the discovery of gold; Impact of gold mining on the indigenous population; Southern view of gold rush society in California; Liberal faith in the self-governing capacities of the populace in California.

Abstract This article further develops the literature on the local consequences of natural resource extraction by using newly collected county data from 1964 to 1988 to capture both short- and long-term mortality effects. The article identifies the net impact on mortality and provides evidence that throughout the majority of its distribution, increases in extractive industry activity are associated with small decreases in total and cancer mortality on a year-to-year basis. However, increases in extractive activity are associated with net increases in county-level total, cancer, and infant mortality in the long run, and at very high levels of activity, and are strongly impacted by coal mining activity. Additional analysis is required regarding the short- and long-run mechanisms, but the paper provides preliminary evidence that extractive activity and local community pollution are positively related. Highlights • Newly collected data are used to identify time-varying effects at the county level. • Resource extraction is associated with small decreases in short-term mortality. • Resource extraction is associated with net increases in mortality over the long-run. • The effects of extraction on mortality vary depending on extraction amount. • The results are strongly impacted by the presence of coal mining activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on pseudomorphs and epimorphs mineral species in Arizona. Topics discussed include the pseudomorph crystals from New Cornelia mine in Ajo, the importance pseudomorph and epimorph localities in the states including Duquesne, South Belmont Mine, and Santa Cruz County, and the occurrence of malachite replacements of azurite in several copper deposits.

Objective: This study characterizes physiological measures of heat exposure among US underground miners. Methods: Core body temperature measured by using ingestible sensors during subjects' normal work shifts was categorized into four temperature zones: less than 37.5 °C, 37.5 °C to less than 38 °C, 38 °C to less than 38.5 °C, and more than or equal to 38.5 °C. Results: On average, subjects changed temperature zones 13.8 times per shift. Temperatures increased above the recommended limit of 38 °C nearly 5 times per shift for an average of 26 minutes each episode. Conclusions: Unlike previous heat stress research that reported only maximum and mean temperature measurements, this analysis demonstrates a dynamic pattern of physiologic heat strain, with core body temperatures changing frequently and exceeding the 38 °C limit multiple times per shift. Further research is needed on the impact of multiple short-term, intermittent heat exposures on miners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we examine discourse in public deliberations in pre-development locales in the UK and US about advantages and disadvantages of future shale development ('fracking'). We aimed to understand how people anticipate potential health effects, broadly construed, of environmental toxicity and disturbance in the context of planned, but not yet implemented, energy development. In day-long deliberations with small, diverse groups in two cities in each country (London, Cardiff in the UK; Los Angeles, Santa Barbara in the US), participants discussed impacts on health and well-being using three main rubrics: 'It's money or health', 'Why take chances?' and 'Beyond the tipping point'. Throughout, participants framed health as an intrinsically moral issue, with collective responsibility as a dominant normative frame. We identify the concept of compound risk to underscore effects of multiple risks and hazards on people's sensibilities about anticipated future health and environmental harm. The findings demonstrate how and why diverse publics in pre-impact sites in both countries saw shale extraction as high stakes development that poses significant, often unacceptable, risks to human and environmental health and well-being. Risks extended beyond toxicity to broad threats to health, including, for some, the end of life as we know it on the planet. Overall, participants' discussions of health were more connected to social categories and their underlying moral principles than to technological details. This work contributes evidence of blurred boundaries between environment and health as well as the importance people place on social risks in the context of proposed energy system change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This project connects past forms of structural violence to current health conditions found in communities. Using historical and archaeological material from deindustrializing region in the United States, it appears that nutritional and livelihood stress in the late nineteenth century may have resulted in the transgenerational inheritance of negative human health outcomes experienced by descendants today. While more in-depth genetic research is needed, it is clear that the study of health disparities found today may be situated in the long-term stresses (environmental and nutritional) that communities faced generations ago. Historical archaeology is a way to develop a longitudinal study of health disparities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Looks at how a modern mining boom town like Elko, Nevada played a major role in the development of Elko County. Mining as the leading industry in Elko, Nevada; Financial assistance rendered by mining companies in Nevada to school systems and other organizations; In-kind services that the mining companies have provided to Elko County.

Focuses on David F. Day and the newspaper `Solid Muldoon' in the history of the mining frontier of Colorado. Day as the best newspaper editor in Colorado; Work in exposing dishonest mine owners, merchants and fellow journalists; Effect on his work as a newspaper editor; Fame as the humorist of the San Juan; Eventual death.

Rare earth elements (REE) are crucial materials in an incredible array of consumer goods, energy system components, and military defense applications. However, the global production and entire value chain for REE is dominated by China, with the U.S. currently 100% import reliant for these critical materials. Traditional mineral ores including those previously mined in the U.S., however, have several challenges. Chief among these is that the content of the most critical and valuable of the rare earths is deficient, making mining uneconomical. Further, the supply of these most critical rare earths is nearly 100% produced in China from a single resource that is only projected to last another 10-20 years. The U.S. currently considers the rare earths market an issue of national security. It is imperative that alternative domestic sources of rare earths be identified and methods developed to produce them. Recently, coal and coal byproducts have been identified as one of these promising alternative resources. This paper details the results of a study on characterization of North Dakota lignite and lignite-related feedstocks as an assessment of their feasibility for REE recovery. The abundance, distribution, and modes of occurrence of the REE in the samples collected were determined in this initial study to inform the selection of appropriate extraction and concentration methods to recover the REE. Materials investigated include the lignite coals, clay-rich sediments associated with the coal seams, and materials associated with a lignite beneficiation system and power plant. The results show that high REE levels exist both in lignite coals and associated sediments. The form of the REE in the clay materials is primarily as ultrafine mineral grains. In the lignite coals, approximately 80-95% of the rare earths content is organically associated, primarily as coordination complexes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The exposure of readily soluble components of overburden materials from surface coal mining to air and water results in mineral oxidation and carbonate mineral dissolution, thus increasing coal mine water conductivity. A conductivity benchmark of 300 µS/cm for mine water discharges in the Appalachian region has been suggested to protect aquatic life and the environment. A USGS screening-level leach test was applied to individual strata from three cores collected from a surface mine site in the central Appalachian region to generate preliminary conductivity rankings, which were used to classify strata for two disposal scenarios: (1) unmodified scenario, which included all extracted strata and (2) modified scenario, which excluded 15% (by mass) of the overburden materials with the highest conductivities. We evaluated overburden leaching conductivity using EPA Method 1627 in 18 dry–wet cycles, generating conductivities of 1020–1150 µS/cm for the unmodified scenario and 624–979 µS/cm for the modified scenario. Hence, overburden segregation was successful in reducing the leachate conductivity, but did not reach the proposed benchmark. The leachate was dominated by sulfate in the first four cycles and by bicarbonates in cycles 5–18 in columns with higher sulfur content, while bicarbonates were dominant throughout experiments with overburden having lower sulfur content. The use of conductivity rankings, isolation of potentially problematic overburden strata, and appropriate materials management could reduce conductivity in central Appalachian streams and other surface mining areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Risk management (RM) is a cyclical process of identifying and ranking risks, implementing controls, and evaluating their effectiveness. This study aims to identify effective RM interventions in the U.S. mining industry. Methods: RM interventions were identified in four companies representing metal, aggregate, and coal mining sectors. Injury rates were determined using Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) data and changes in injury rates identified through change point analysis. Program implementation costs and associated changes in injury costs were evaluated for select interventions. Results: Six of 20 RM interventions were associated with a decline in all injuries and one with a reduction in lost-time injuries, all with a positive return on investment. Conclusion: Reductions in injuries and associated costs were observed following implementation of a limited number of specific RM interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the role of the jurisprudence of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) within a business and human rights framework. A qualitative data analysis of cases on multinational enterprises (mnes) identifies the following: that the obligations the IACtHR places upon States explicitly contemplate soft law instruments, such as the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights; and that there exist shared obligations with companies and attempts to regulate mne conduct by establishing conditions for due diligence, such as prior consultation, benefit-sharing and reparation measures for affected communities. Therefore, IACtHR rulings may contribute to the rule of law in so far as they have normative effects on member States, but they can also prove to be ineffective given the nature of corporate conduct and certain non-enforceable responsibilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the views of various focus-group participants regarding issues involving access to water, water quality, and water use in southeastern Ohio as of 2017, and it mentions the relationship between public health and water supply protection. Water contamination and the disposal of chemicals into the Ohio Valley drinking water supply are examined, along with hydraulic fracturing regulations and zoning laws in the Ohio region.

BACKGROUND: Higher risk of exposure to environmental health hazards near oil and gas wells has spurred interest in quantifying populations that live in proximity to oil and gas development. The available studies on this topic lack consistent methodology and ignore aspects of oil and gas development of value to public health--relevant assessment and decision-making. OBJECTIVES: We aim to present a methodological framework for oil and gas development proximity studies grounded in an understanding of hydrocarbon geology and development techniques. METHODS: We geospatially overlay locations of active oil and gas wells in the conterminous United States and Census data to estimate the population living in proximity to hydrocarbon development at the national and state levels. We compare our methods and findings with existing proximity studies. RESULTS: Nationally, we estimate that 17.6 million people live within 1,600 m (~1 mi) of at least one active oil and/or gas well. Three of the eight studies overestimate populations at risk from actively producing oil and gas wells by including wells without evidence of production or drilling completion and/or using inappropriate population allocation methods. The remaining five studies, by omitting conventional wells in regions dominated by historical conventional development, significantly underestimate populations at risk. CONCLUSIONS: The well inventory guidelines we present provide an improved methodology for hydrocarbon proximity studies by acknowledging the importance of both conventional and unconventional well counts as well as the relative exposure risks associated with different primary production categories (e.g., oil, wet gas, dry gas) and developmental stages of wells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silicosis is the oldest know occupational pulmonary disease. It is a progressive disease and any level of exposure to respirable crystalline silica particles or dust has the potential to develop into silicosis. Silicosis is caused by silica particles or dust entering the lungs and damaging healthy lung tissue. The damage restricts the ability to breathe. Exposure to silica increases a worker's risk of developing cancer or tuberculosis. This special report will provide background history of silicosis in the U.S., including the number of workers affected and their common industries. Over the years, these industries have impeded government oversight, resulting in silicosis exposure clusters. The risk of acquiring silicosis is diminished when industry implements safety measures with oversight by governmental agencies. Reputable authorities believe that the current innovative drilling techniques such as fracking will generate future cases of silicosis in the U.S. if safety measures to protect workers are ignored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We are living in an era of vast inequality. Income and wealth gaps between ‘the haves’ and ‘have-nots’ have reached epidemic proportions. The top 1 per cent of earners in the United States pulled in a whopping 19.3 per cent of household income in 2012, their biggest slice of total income in more than 100 years. In 2014, the World Economic Forum listed severe income inequality as the number one global risk and Tom Piketty’s unlikely best seller, Capital in the 21st Century, documented the rising ratio of wealth to income and the growth of a ‘rentier class’. Even in Australia, where the mining industry continues to power economic growth, the income and wealth gap between the lowest and highest quintile of earners is stark. According to recent data, the top 20 per cent of Australians earn five times the income of the bottom 20 per cent, while holding 71 times more wealth. The question for mediation scholars and practitioners is whether this growing gap is affecting the way in which society’s ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’ access and experience mediation. At the low end of the socio-economic totem pole, government cuts in legal services – combined with mediation practitioners’ obsession with neutrality – potentiate uninformed decision-making by unrepresented parties. At the high end, models of practice catering to legal professionals’ preferences threaten to rob mediation of its transformative, therapeutic potential. This paper will explore these troubling developments and query whether growing social inequality should precipitate shifts in our thinking about mediation ethics and the way we educate the next generation of lawyers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the environmental and human health impacts of oil and gas wastewater spills in the U.S. Topics include an increase in the volume of wastewater produced by conventional and unconventional oil wells due to an increase of fracking in the U.S. since 2008, the lack of a complete list of chemicals to focus on despite the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's research on potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water sources, and a decline in microorganisms downstream.

Crimsonite (IMA2014-095), PbFe3+ 2(PO4)2(OH)2, the phosphate analogue of carminite, is a new mineral from the Silver Coin mine, Valmy, Iron Point district, Humboldt County, Nevada, USA, where it occurs as a low-temperature secondary mineral in association with fluorwavellite, goethite, hematite, hentschelite, plumbogummite and variscite on quartz. Crimsonite occurs in subparallel aggregates of deep red blades or plates flattened on {100} and up to 0.1 mm in maximum dimension. The streak is light purplish orange. Crystals are transparent and have adamantine lustre. The Mohs hardness is ~31/2, the tenacity is brittle, the fracture is irregular to splintery and an imperfect cleavage is likely on {101}. The calculated density is 5.180 g/cm3. Crimsonite is optically biaxial (+), with 2V = 85.5(5)° and γ - α = 0.011. Using the Gladstone- Dale relationship, the calculated indices of refraction are α = 2.021, β = 2.026 and γ = 2.032. The optical orientation is X = b; Y = a; Z = c and the pleochroism is X light orange, Y light yellow, Z red brown; Y < X < Z. Electron microprobe analyses provided PbO 40.69, CaO 0.60, ZnO 0.72, CuO 0.13, Fe2O3 23.36, Al2O3 0.34, V2O5 0.70, As2O5 12.05, P2O5 16.03, SO3 0.33 and H2O 3.64 (structure), total 98.59 wt.%. The empirical formula (based on 10 O apfu) is (Pb1.06Ca0.06)Σ1.12(Fe1.71Zn0.05Al0.04Cu0.01)Σ1.81(P1.32As0.61 V0.05S0.02)Σ2.00O8[(OH)1.64(H2O)0.36]Σ2.00. Crimsonite is orthorhombic, Cccm, a = 16.2535(13), b = 7.4724(4), c = 12.1533(9) Å, V = 1476.04(17) Å3 and Z = 8. The eight strongest lines in the powder X-ray diffraction pattern are [dobs in Å(I )(hkl)]: 5.86(42)(111); 4.53(45)(112); 3.485(64)(113); 3.190(100) (022); 3.026(40)(004); 2.902(54)(511); 2.502(77)(422) and 2.268(54)(224). The structure of crimsonite (R1 = 3.57% for 740 Fo > 4σF) contains FeO6 octahedra that share edges to form dimers, which are then linked to other dimers by corner sharing to form chains along [010]. These chains are linked by PO4 tetrahedra yielding sheets parallel to {001}. The sheets are linked to one another via bonds to 8-coordinated Pb2+ atoms with non-stereoactive 6s2 lone-electron pairs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pauladamsite (IMA2015-005), Cu4(SeO3)(SO4)(OH)4·2H2O, is a new mineral from the Santa Rosa mine, Darwin district, Inyo County, California, USA, where it occurs as a secondary oxidation-zone mineral in association with brochantite, chalcanthite, gypsum, ktenasite, mimetite, schulenbergite and smithsonite on limonitic gossan. Pauladamsite forms green, multiply twinned blades up to 0.5 mm long grouped in radial sprays. The streak is pale green. Crystals are transparent and have vitreous to silky lustre. The Mohs hardness is ~2, the tenacity is brittle, the fracture is irregular and crystals exhibit one perfect cleavage on [001]. The calculated density is 3.535 g/cm3. Electron microprobe analyses provided: CuO 48.96, ZnO 3.56, SeO2 18.82, SO3 13.90, H2O 13.29 (calc.), total 98.53 wt.%. The empirical formula (based on 13 O apfu) is: (Cu3.55Zn0.25)Σ3.80Se0.98SO13H8.50. Pauladamsite is triclinic, Pī1, a = 6.0742(7), b = 8.4147(11), c = 10.7798 (15) Å, α = 103.665(7), β = 95.224(7), γ = 90.004(6)°, V = 533.03(12) Å3 and Z = 2. The eight strongest lines in the powder X-ray diffraction pattern are [dobs in Å(I )(hkl)]: 10.5(46)(011); 3.245(100)(001); 5.81(50)(011); 2.743(49)(112); 3.994(67)(012); 3.431(23)(112,121,120); 2.692(57)(032,122,212); and 2.485(39)(212,132,024). The structure of pauladamsite (R1=10.6% for 2086 Fo > 4σF) contains Cu2+O6 octahedra, SO4 tetrahedra and Se4+O3 pyramids. There are four different CuO6 octahedra, each of which exhibits typical Jahn-Teller distortion, with four short equatorial Cu-O bonds and two much longer apical Cu-O bonds. The CuO6 octahedra share edges to form five-octahedra-wide bands extending along [100]. Adjacent bands are connected in the [011] direction by bridging SO4 tetrahedra and in the [011] direction by bridging Se4+O3 pyramids, thereby forming a framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]