As coal dwindles, mining states trim safety inspections

Kathy Bartlett watched helplessly this spring as Kentucky lawmakers cut back on mine safety inspections and replaced them with coaching sessions on miners' safety habits. She knows more than most what's at stake.Bartlett's son, Rickey Thorpe, was crushed to death in a western Kentucky underground mine in 2015 when a coal-digging machine's 17-ton cutting head — propped up with wooden boards — gave out as he worked underneath it.Bartlett, who recently visited her son's grave on what would have been his 31st birthday, says that's why the state shouldn't reduce the number of traditional inspections."Them passing this (law), it's totally wrong," she said. "I was totally against it, but that's one person against thousands. Rick lost his life because there was things that wasn't done properly." State officials say they aren't easing up on enforcement. They say the new law, which takes effect Friday, puts officials in the mines more frequently to work with miners on safe working habits.Appalachian coal states like Kentucky have seen a slowdown in mining and are looking to trim the required number of annual inspections. West Virginia lawmakers considered scaling back mandatory inspections to one from four this year but backed off amid criticism.With Kentucky's law, passed by the Republican-controlled legislature, state officials can replace half of the six required inspections with "analyst visits" that focus on coaching. The law still allows for increased inspections if officials identify a problem.The reductions come as the Trump administration proposes cuts to the Department of Labor, which administers the federal mine safety program, even as Trump seeks to reinvigorate the coal industry. Federal inspectors are required by law to conduct four inspections a year on underground mines.In West Virginia, a backlash to the proposed state cutbacks may have caught lawmakers by surprise."Frankly I think the attempt to received national media attention in West Virginia, and I don't think those who were leading that charge were prepared for that," said Phil Smith, United Mine Workers of America spokesman.West Virginia recorded its fifth mining death June 13, surpassing last year's total of three. Nine coal miners have been killed this year nationwide. A record low of eight died in 2016.Smith said western mining states have all but eliminated state inspection programs; Illinois and Alabama have reduced theirs. Virginia requires two annual inspections on underground mines.State officials and industry advocates praise the new Kentucky law, saying it will put inspectors in the mine more frequently but alter their role. Inspectors on analyst visits can still write citations if they see violations.