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Page added on August 14, 2012
32 Mexico coal mines shuttered for safety reasons
Mexico City, Aug 11 (IANS/EFE) Mexico’s government said 32 small coal mines in the northern state of Coahuila have been closed due to safety concerns, a move taken after 13 miners were killed in that region in less than a month.
In a press conference Thursday, Labor and Social Welfare Secretary Rosalinda Velez announced the suspension of work – effective immediately – at 32 mines in Coahuila, citing violations of safety regulations.
The measure, which comes after 13 mine workers were killed in Coahuila in two recent accidents, permanently shutters 14 mines and temporarily closes 18.
Velez said her secretariat and the economy portfolio will work jointly on revoking licenses at mines where “serious violations of regulations” have been detected.
She noted that more than 1,000 inspections have been carried out at Mexican coal mines since March 2009, including 282 thus far this year.
Economy Secretary Bruno Ferrari said the Labor and Social Welfare Secretariat requested the shutdowns of the mines in Coahuila, where 95 percent of Mexico’s coal is extracted, due to their non-compliance with worker safety regulations.
Fourteen miners were killed and a child labourer suffered serious injuries in a May 2011 explosion at one of the shuttered mines.
Two weeks ago, seven miners were killed in Muzquiz, Coahuila, in an explosion triggered by a pocket of accumulated gas.
Nine days later, Aug 3, six more miners were killed in a cave-in at a mine located in the town of San Juan Sabinas, Coahuila, and operated by the Mimosa unit of Minera del Norte, a subsidiary of steelmaker Altos Hornos de Mexico.
Mining accounts for 4.9 percent of Mexico’s gross domestic product and is the country’s fourth-leading source of foreign currency.
3 Comments on "32 Mexico coal mines shuttered for safety reasons"
BillT on Wed, 15th Aug 2012 2:00 am
No news here. Coal mines all over the world are closing, and the reason is usually ‘safety’ although it really is that the mines are played out and not worth the cost of safety measures. If they were, the mines would still be operating. We have passed peak coal long ago. The stuff we call coal now is barely better than wood.
DC on Wed, 15th Aug 2012 5:28 am
Given Mexico’s inability to deal with much more basic issues, like clean water, and law and order, hard to see how they can enforce such a ruling. Good that they did this of course, but can they make it stick?
Kenz300 on Thu, 16th Aug 2012 1:14 pm
For too long the people of Mexico have accepted police corruption, political corruption and business leaders corruption. It is time for the Mexican people to stand up and say enough. The Mexican government needs to provide safety, services and jobs for its people. In the past they were happy to export their people and the problems.