By Tom Ayers
Many are calling for Premier Tim Houston to quickly get back the miner’s jobs.
A rally in Glace Bay (N.S.) on Tuesday brought together more than 150 supporters of Donkin’s abandoned underground coal mine.
Nova Scotia’s Department of Labour ordered a halt to work at the mine after two roofs collapsed in a week in July.
After a review by a third party of the safety plans of the mine’s operator, officials from the province said that the mine could reopen as long as the owner updated its risk assessment and increased monitoring of roof movement.
The owner of the mine, Kameron Coal, hasn’t said if it will comply with these conditions. But those who attended the rally called for the province to act quickly to put the miners to work.
“Hopefully with everyone that came out, and [if] We get some of local politicians involved, they’ll step up and help us,” said AJ Hall. Hall was a miner who had worked underground at the Donkin Mine until he lost his job this summer.
Hall stated that mine owner Kameron Coal offers good-paying jobs, and their operation is safe.
Around 130 full-time employees work at the site.
He said, “Unfortunately the government is the one who has the noose on the neck of this company. They’re the only ones that can let go.”
Hall’s dad was among the 12 men who died in Glace Bay Number 26’s underground explosion of 1979.
Hall told me that if he were his father, he would tell him to go back to work.
The conditions that miners today face are different from those in which his father was employed.
Hall stated, “I would think they’re much safer than when he went underground.”
I was six. “I was only six.”
At the rally, several councillors as well as the Mayor of Cape Breton Regional Municipality urged the Province to expedite the return of the mine to production.
Many protesters criticized the Department of Labour for its slowness in completing the safety review.
Dawson Brisco CEO of Morien Resources said that the stop-work orders were issued by Morien Resources in July. Morien Resources receives royalties on all Donkin coal sales.
The province waited until the end of September before ordering a third party review, and revealed its results only last week.
Brisco claimed that the government erred in closing the mine, and delaying the reopening of the mine for such a long time.
There’s no reason to lock them up for four months in a case where nobody was hurt and no equipment was even damaged. Brisco stated that four months was too much time.
He said that the stop-work order issued in response to the deaths on the job at the Michelin Tire plant in Waterville (N.S.) and the Martin Marietta Quarry near Port Hastings lasted just a couple of days.
Is it really safety, or just the appearance of safety?
According to the Department of Labour, it was necessary to wait until a third party review is completed before allowing miners to return underground.
Jill Balser, the Labour Minister, said last week that no one wanted to see another miner die underground. In 1992, 26 miners were fatally injured in this province.
She said, “Of Course Westray is in the minds of Nova Scotians. Those who have been directly affected by this catastrophe think about it every day.”
The department’s goal is to ensure that safety at work is always top-of-mind in everything we do.
Brisco is one of those who have stated that Kameron Coal might not reopen if the regulators cause too much uncertainty.
Morien Resources has reported that it has received about $3.2 Million in royalties from the mine since its opening in 2017.
Kameron Coal gets a two-percent share of the sales. This means that Kameron Coal sold around $159 Million worth of Donkin coal to date.
Brisco stated that Kameron Coal had invested more than $300,000,000 in developing the mine. It has not yet recovered its investment.
The company must know that if another roof falls, without any injuries, the government will not shut down the mine for at least four months.
Brisco is confident that the mine, in time, will be reopened.
“Until the tunnels are filled with water, we will not stop.” “I will fight forever for this mine”, he declared.
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