OSM Responds to WV Coal Association
March 19, 2020 - The below response from Lanny Erdos, OSM’s Acting Director, was received this morning. We forwarded an acknowledgement of our appreciation for his quick response.
Bill (Raney):
I too share your concerns. These are challenging times for all Americans, and we at OSM certainly respect the concerns of the WV Coal Association, and the industry across the country.
With that said, I have instructed our oversight inspection staff to delay any oversight inspections until the end of April at a minimum. The only exceptions are safety and/or imminent environmental harm issues. If we "must" be onsite, our staff have been instructed to coordinate with out state partners and the industry. They have been further instructed to ensure proper COVID-19 protocol, and to expect a health screening that may include temperature readings.
We are all in this together. We are thankful for the energy that coal industry provides, and respect the hard working miners across the country.
As a note, I sending from my personal e-mail due to laptop issue, but please cc my OSM account with any response....thanks.
Lanny