The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) received a petition from Century Mining, LLC to modify existing safety standards for using alternative respirable dust protection equipment. The petitioner seeks to use battery-powered respirators like the PureFlo ESM+ PF60, 3M Versaflo TR-300N, and Drager X-plore 8700 rather than the outdated 3M Airstream helmet, which is no longer available due to component disruptions. They assert that this alternative method will offer the same level of protection for miners while complying with safety standards. The proposed change includes specific guidelines for training, inspection, and usage to ensure miner safety, even though these new products do not currently meet MSHA approval.
Simple Explanation
Century Mining wants to use new, modern masks to keep miners safe because the old ones are not available anymore, but the new masks still need to get a special safety approval.