“Sentinels of Safety” Awards Honor Outstanding Safety Performance at U.S. Coal, Metal and Nonmetal Mines in 2011

Las Vegas, Nev. – The National Mining Association (NMA) today recognized 21 U.S. coal, metal and nonmetal mining operations for their outstanding safety record in 2011.

The “Sentinels of Safety,” awarded annually to the nation’s safest mining operations with a minimum of 4,000 injury-free hours, this year was awarded to six coal and 15 metal and nonmetal mining operations. Mines compete in twenty different categories that reflect type and size, both surface and underground.

“The mines we honor today symbolize our industry’s continuing efforts to make U.S. mining the safest in the world,” said Frank McAllister, NMA’s incoming chairman and chairman and CEO of Stillwater Mining Company, “They serve as an inspiration to the entire industry for achieving that goal.”

This year’s Sentinels of Safety winners are just a few among the many other U.S. mines that operated throughout 2011 without a single lost-time injury. In addition to the award winners, the top four operations in each category received a certificate of recognition for meeting or exceeding the Sentinels award criteria (see link below). “Sustaining year-to-year improvements in mine safety has become the top priority of U.S. mines,” NMA President and CEO Hal Quinn remarked during the awards presentations.

This year’s annual Sentinels Awards luncheon, held at the Las Vegas Convention Center during NMA’s MINExpo INTERNATIONAL® 2012 mining equipment, products and services exhibition, also featured the inaugural Mine Safety and Health Technology Innovations Awards sponsored by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
Sentinels of Safety awards were initiated in 1925 by then Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover and remain the nation’s most prestigious awards for recognizing safety in coal, metal and nonmetal mines.

The 2011 Sentinels of Safety Award winners in all categories are as follows:
Large Company Award Winners:

Coal Processing Facility – McElroy Prep Plant, McElroy Coal Co., Moundsville, W.Va.

Surface Coal – Rosebud Mine & Crusher/Conveyer, Westmoreland Mining, LLC, Colstrip, Mont.

Underground Coal – Dugout Canyon Mine, Canyon Fuel Co., LLC, Wellington, Utah.

Bank or Pit – Preferred Sands of Wisconsin, Preferred Sands of Wisconsin, LLC, Blair, Wis.

Dredge – Irwindale Rock Plant, Hanson Aggregates Pacific Southwest, Inc., Irwindale, Calif.

Metal-Nonmetal Mill – Mill Autoclave Operations, Barrick Goldstrike Mines, Inc., Carlin, Nev.

Open Pit – Barrick Ruby Hill Mine, Open Pit Division, Homestake Mining Company of California, Eureka, Nev.

Quarry – Three Rivers Quarry, LaFarage West, Inc., Smithfield, Ky.

Underground Metal – Pend Oreille Mine, Teck Washington Inc., Metaline Falls, Wash.

Underground Nonmetal – Cayuga Mine, Cargill Deicing Technology, Lansing, N.Y.

Small Company Award Winners:
Coal Processing Facility – EME Homer City Generation, EME Homer City Generation, Homer City, Pa.

Surface Coal – Centre County Strips, Amfire Mining Company, LLC, Latrobe, Pa.

Underground Coal – Bergholz 7, Rosebud Mining Company, Bergholz, Ohio.

Bank or Pit – (Tie) Portable Crushing Plant No. 2, Carr Brothers & Sons, Inc., Albion, Mich.; and Starrette Trucking Co. Pit, Starrette Co., Inc., Augusta, Ga.

Dredge – Grove, Cornejo & Sons, LLC, Wichita, Kan.

Metal-Nonmetal Mill – Milton Plant, Hanson Aggregates Pennsylvania, LLC, Montoursville, Pa.

Open Pit – Kaufman-George Pit, New NGC Inc., Fort Dodge, Iowa.

Quarry – Malllard Creek Quarry, Martin Marietta Materials, Inc., Charlotte, N.C.

Underground Metal – Fire Creek, Small Mine Development, LLC, Crescent Valley, Nev.

Underground Nonmetal – Parkville Mine, Hunt Martin Materials, LLC, Parkville, Mo.

For further information on the Sentinels of Safety awards, see www.nma.org.