<http://www.wsws.org/articles/2002/jul2002/mine-j29.shtml>
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Mine officials and government safety experts have been quick to blame faulty maps for the Quecreek disaster. Indeed, the maps with which the miners were working showed the Saxman mine as being 300 feet from the spot where they hit it.
But it has long been known that the 50-year-old maps are far less accurate than today's mapping, which can pinpoint mine digs to within centimeters. Moreover, it was common practice for mine owners to dig coal wherever they found it, even if they had not bought the rights for the coal. Mine companies did not map such illicit excavations.
To compensate, two techniques have been widely used throughout the mining industry, especially when miners are operating near abandoned shafts. Neither appears to have been used by the owners at Quecreek.
The first is to conduct a two-dimensional seismic profiling of the mine. Seismic readings provide data on the location of faults, fractures and voids, which often fill with water. Ed Blott, a consultant with the Littleton, Colo., company ExplorTech, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the cost for such a profile for a mine the size of Quecreek would be only about $80,000.
Another, even less expensive method, is to have miners drill a test hole in front of where they plan to dig. These probe holes are usually less then 2 inches in diameter, but up to 30 feet long. They can expose dangerous pockets of underground water, and then be quickly and safely plugged.
The operation at Quecreek reflects the depression that has hit the US coal industry since the late 1970s and devastated entire sections of Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Somerset County has seen scores of mines close down and thousands of miners lose their jobs.
As a result, a number of small non-union mines such as Quecreek have opened which employ miners at only a fraction of what unionized miners received and with far lower benefits. They specialize in reaching coal seams, using mainly human power, that were unprofitable for the larger mines to dig.
The Quecreek mine is less than two years old and employs some 60 miners who work the mine in three shifts around the clock. Quecreek produced 15,000 tons a month last year with about 40 employees, and currently produces 50,000 tons a month. Larger mines average 500,000 tons.
Since opening, Quecreek has been cited 26 times for safety violations, but has been only fined $859. Of the 26 citations, 16 were levied in 2001 and were considered "significant and substantial."
This year, the company has received no fines for its 10 citations, even though five violations were considered "significant and substantial" and six took place below ground, including misuse of combustible materials and insufficient guards for mechanical equipment.