Mine Safety Agency Defends Silica Rule Against Clay Mining Group

A rule intended to protect miners from toxic quantities of breathable silica dust falls within the federal government’s statutory authority, the federal mine safety agency told a federal appeals court.

The US Mine Safety and Health Administration asserted that the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act granted it the power to regulate toxic health hazards in mines and doesn’t require the agency to find a significant risk before changing an existing standard, the agency said in a brief to the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.

MSHA is defending its April 2024 final rule, which dropped the ...