Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 19, May 10, 2024
Section 56-17-5 - Coal Dust Survey Implementation Procedure5.1. The Director, or his/her designated authorized representative, shall conduct a coal dust survey of each mine by collecting samples at locations that are representative of the conditions found in said mine. The coal dust survey shall be conducted at least twice each year or more frequently at the discretion of the Director.5.2. The detailed procedures for the performance of the coal dust survey shall be published in the coal-dust practices survey program and posted on the OM HST website and are incorporated by reference herein. Modifications of these procedures may be made by the Director after consultation with the Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety. The OMHST shall make copies of the coal-dust practices survey program documentation available to miners and operators upon request.
5.3. Each coal dust survey shall include, at a minimum, a random sample location no more than one thousand (1,000) feet from the working section loading point in a room and pillar mine and no more than one thousand (1,000) feet from the tailgate or maingate in a longwall mine. At the discretion of the Director or an Inspector, samples may be taken at other locations based upon proximity to a potential ignition source or based upon the appearance that conditions in the mine are substantially inferior to minimum mandatory coal dust requirements.5.4. All entries in the section shall be sampled in a line roughly perpendicular to the direction of the entry in which the initial sample was taken, but no more than three (3) crosscuts inby or outby such a line, with the location selected being the same distance from the inby edge of the pillar as that in the initial entry.5.5. Samples will be taken from the top one-eighth (1/8) inch of material in a band at the location selected. The material shall be separately collected from the ribs and roof from that of the floor. Each sample of collected material shall be sieved through a standard 20-mesh per linear inch sieve unless it retains sufficient moisture to prevent passing the sieve and is not considered too wet. If the sample is too wet to sieve, then the un-sieved material shall be placed in the sample bag.5.6. Each sample shall be placed in an OMHST Mine Dust Sample Bag and sealed. The data sheet located on each OMHST Mine Dust Sample Bag which provides the unique bag identification number shall be completed and placed in the OMHST Mine Dust Sample Bag prior to being sealed. The surveyor shall complete the chain of custody portion of the OMHST Mine Dust Sample Bag to include his or her name and the date the sample was collected. The surveyor shall maintain custody of the OMHST Mine Dust Sample Bag until it is either delivered to the coal dust lab or handed to the clerk at the United States Post Office for shipment to the coal dust lab.