Make Lungs Black Again

Trump's war on coal miners continues

I will die on this hill: Trump is bad for coal miners, and has (on many occasions) ironically been bad for the coal industry itself too. He has always pretended to be on the side of the miners, and they’ve turned out heavily in support of him. But it’s all been smoke and mirrors.

I’ll be the first to confess: I’m not a coal miner. Never have been. Haven’t ever set foot in a coal mine. And to many in West Virginia and beyond, that disqualifies me from even opining on the subject of coal.¹ Fine. You can have that opinion. But I believe you don’t have to have done any of that to be able to recognize a con when you see it happening.

Here’s the thing, though: I have endless respect, admiration, and loyalty to coal miners and the work that they do. It is one of the hardest jobs in the country, and one of the most dangerous, and it is a job that has been used as a political prop and pawn for decades (actually, over a century). This translates to calling out bullshit when I see it, and this week the Trump Administration engaged in quite a bit of it.

MAHA = More Black Lung

Before I bury the lede, here is what happened: the Trump Administration delayed enforcement of a rule that would reduce coal miners’ exposure to silica dust — a leading cause of black lung disease.² Silica dust is 20x more toxic than coal dust. There has been a massive uptick in black lung cases in recent years, so much so that 1 in 5 miners suffer from it. Implementing this rule would have objectively saved the lives of miners.

This chart was pulled from the article “The Young Miners Dying of “An Old Man’s Disease”, written by the venerable Kim Kelly

So let’s look at some reasons how we got here.

Bobby Bear Carcass guts NIOSH

RFK Jr. somehow made time in his busy schedule of lugging dead bear carcasses around to make massive cuts to HHS recently, which included cuts to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). In fact, it’s been reported that he cut almost 90% of the institute’s staff.

Why does this matter?

This will gut the institute’s ability to run studies that focus on mining health and safety, respirator testing and certification, and firefighter health. They were instrumental in calling for the silica dust exposure rule.

NIOSH has been calling for a federal regulation reducing the allowable amount of silica exposure since 1974, but a web of bureaucratic roadblocks (and a lack of political will) kept the issue on the regulatory backburner for half a century

(Source)

Industry trade groups sue to stop the silica rule

A mining industry group did what any industry trade group would do when faced with a new regulatory hurdle that would cost their companies more money: they filed a lawsuit.

In the conservative-friendly 8th circuit, the National Stone, Sand, and Gravel Association was granted an emergency stay to temporarily block the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) from enforcing the silica dust exposure rule, that was set to take effect on April 14th.

Industry groups challenging the rule in court have argued it’s too far-reaching, saying in a filing last week the looming compliance deadline was “generating extreme costs” for coal mine operators and casting doubt over measurement methods needed to meet rule requirements.

(Source)

MSHA announces the pause, attributes it (in not explicit, but implied terms) to Bobby Bear Carcass

One day after Donald Trump paraded coal miners around in the White House and scribbled on some executive orders about how much he was going to make coal hit again, MSHA put a hard stop to enforcing the silica rule.

MSHA issued a notice to stakeholders on Tuesday announcing a temporary enforcement pause for the silica rule through at least August 18th, 2025. It is critically important that we break this down a bit:

In an exercise of its enforcement discretion, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), within the U.S. Department of Labor, announces a temporary enforcement pause of its final rule titled, “Lowering Miners’ Exposure to Respirable Crystalline Silica and Improving Respiratory Protection,” 89 Fed. Reg. 28,218 (Apr. 18, 2024) (“Silica Rule”). MSHA will temporarily pause enforcement of the requirements in 30 C.F.R. part 60 for coal mine operators until August 18, 2025, four months from the original compliance date of April 14, 2025.

The word discretion is extremely important, because it implies MSHA is exercising a choice. Merriam-Webster defines discretion as “an individual choice or judgment,” so if we are to take the agency at their word, they are making a conscious choice to not enforce this rule (i.e., their hands aren’t being tied). Let’s move on….

Given the unforeseen NIOSH restructuring, and other technical reasons, MSHA offers this four-month temporary pause to provide time for operators to secure necessary equipment and otherwise come into compliance. This pause will also provide MSHA time to assist mining industry compliance, e.g., help accredited laboratories gain proficiency in MSHA analytical methods.

“Unforeseen NIOSH restructuring” is doing a lot of heavy lifting!

I would suggest rewording it to say “gutting and decimation of the institute,” but that’s just me ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.

The important point, though, is that MSHA is admitting they are delaying enforcement of this rule because of Bobby Bear Carcass’s HHS firings at NIOSH — a self-inflicted wound that has now caused a life-saving safety measure to be delayed for 4-months at the very least.

This is frustrating and senseless. Yes, the coal industry is in decline, and we desperately need to be on a path to clean, renewable, sustainable energy. But we have to protect the men and women who risk their lives going into underground mines every day. This rule was fought heavily for by many who care deeply about the safety of those folks, and the people in the admin who couldn't care less have now decided to discard it — at least for the time being (but likely longer)³

Sorry, I don’t have a weekly music rec this week — I’m rage writing this, so I can’t say I’m quite in the right headspace. However, if you appreciate my writing, it would mean the world to me if you upgraded to become a paid subscriber to No Elegy Needed.

After 5 1/2 years of pouring thousands of hours into building Appodlachia as a platform to advocate for Appalachia and spout off opinions, I want to make the time I dedicate to it count financially. I know that sounds slightly selfish, but it is the truth. Regardless, thank you so much for being a loyal reader and follower of my work. It means the world to me.

1. My guess is, though, that those people will never read my Substack to begin with.

2. Tremendous credit to former guest of the show and former Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health, Chris Williamson — who spearheaded the effort to finalize this rule during his tenure as head of MSHA.

3. House Republicans tried to do some budgetary jujitsu last year to kneecap the rule, so there is already GOP hostility to it to begin with!