COLORADO MINES EARN TOP SAFETY HONORS
The Colorado Mining Association (CMA) and the state of Colorado honored a near record number of individuals and companies for outstanding safety practices in 2011, at a ceremony held during the 114th National Western Mining Conference & Exhibition at the Westin Hotel Denver March 22.
Stuart Sanderson, CMA President, told the award winners that “you exemplify the very best in safety achievement.”
Colorado’s mine employees went yet another year in 2011 without a fatality, Sanderson told the more than 200 persons who gathered for the event. And four of the state’s ten coal mines worked the entire year without any lost time accidents, as did many metal and non-metal mining operations.
TOP SAFETY HONORS GO TO WEST ELK, DESERADO, COLOWYO, NEW HORIZON AND AMERICAN GYPSUM MINES
Top safety honors for a large surface coal mine again went to Western Fuels – Colorado LLC’s Colowyo Mine, in Moffat County, which has worked safely and with no lost time injuries for 459 days as of December 31, 2011 (a total of 732,339 hours). Meanwhile, Western Fuels small New Horizon Mine reported working the entire 2011 calendar year without a lost-time or reportable injury, a total of 50,571 man hours.
INDIVIDUAL SAFETY AWARD WINNERS
Eleven (11) individuals also achieved recognition for working more than 30 years without a lost time injury. They are listed by mine below:
Colowyo Mine
Charles B. (Brian) Coulter
Eugene F, (Gene) McQuay
Delbert J. Trujillo
Leonard M. (Mark) Cook
Frank A. Stewart
Dennis K. Kuenning
Darrell C. Arnold
All are heavy equipment operators