PRESS RELEASE: MSHA's request for information (RFI) focuses on reducing accidents involving mobile equipment at surface mines and belt conveyors at surface and underground mines.

David G. Zatezalo, assistant secretary of labour for mine safety and health, said: "Through the deployment of modern technologies, such as proximity detection, we can help ensure that miners return home safely at the end of their shifts."

Mobile equipment at surface operations includes bulldozers, front-end loaders and trucks, while belt conveyors are used to transport materials in surface and underground mines.

The RFI is part of a larger initiative that MSHA is undertaking to reduce accidents involving powered haulage.

As part of this effort, MSHA plans to hold stakeholder meetings and will provide technical assistance and develop best practices and training materials to raise awareness of hazards related to mobile equipment and belt conveyors.

The agency also may consider engineering controls that increase the use of seat belts, enhance equipment operators' ability to see all areas near the machine, warn equipment operators of potential collision hazards, prevent an equipment operator from driving over the edge of a highwall or dump point, and help prevent hazards related to working near moving belt conveyors.