UofU mining safety program brings new perspectives to underground hazards

An educational collaboration between the Rocky Mountain Center for Occupational and Environmental Health (RMCOEH) and the Department of Mining Engineering at the University of Utah will bring new perspectives to tackle tough problems in mining safety.

Mining technology in the United States has advanced immeasurably from minecarts and “jack-legs” (very large jackhammers), but working in or around mines still presents unique and serious hazards, said W. Pratt Rogers, associate professor in mining engineering at the UofU. He describes the dangers of mining labor in terms of “high-energy zones”: regions where large and powerful machinery or heavy objects have the potential to exert massive amounts of force. “If you make one snap decision wrong in a high-energy zone, you can lose a Please log in to see the rest of this story.