West Virginia to Revisit Mine Seal Rules

The state board of Coal Mine Health and Safety plans to revisit West Virginia’s regulations for sealing abandoned sections of coal mines.

State law requires the board to review West Virginia’s regulations because the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration changed its seal rules April 18.

The new rules stem from separate methane gas explosions in 2006 that killed 17 miners in West Virginia and Kentucky.

MSHA now requires seals to withstand at least 50 pounds of blast pressure per square inch. MSHA also requires operators to monitor for methane in sealed sections of mines if seals can’t withstand blasts of up to 120 psi.