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Congressional-Executive Commission on China
Coal Mine Safety in China: Can the Accident Rate be Reduced?
Friday, December 10, 2004 at 10:00 AM
Rayburn House Office Building Room 2255
The CECC staff will hold another in our series of Issues Roundtables on Friday, December 10, 2004, at 10:00 AM in Room 2255 Rayburn. Entitled "Coal Mine Safety in China: Can the Accident Rate be Reduced?" this Roundtable will examine the increase in fatal coal mine accidents in China and will assess the future of mine safety programs there.
All CECC hearings and Issues Roundtables are open to the public and press. We encourage personal staff to attend to participate as representatives of their bosses.
News reports in recent weeks about miners killed and trapped in Chinese coal mines underscore the need for top-level Chinese government attention to coal mine safety. The burgeoning rate of fatalities appears to be the result of heavy demand for energy in China and the growing desperation of farmers driven by poverty to seek jobs underground in small, dangerous mines. Official government statistics tell a grim story of workers injured and killed in coal mines: figures released in June 2004 show that over 6,000 miners died in 2003. An expert at the Chinese Mining University estimates a national rate of 12 fatalities per million tons of coal. As of October 30, 2004, some 4,153 Chinese mine workers lost their lives in 2004.
The Chinese government has some control over safety standards in large state-owed coal mines, but virtually no control over small private mines, where most fatal accidents occur. The Chinese people are increasingly aware of the appalling death and injury toll, but one Chinese expert expressed the view that it would take decades before China reaches the safety levels of the developed world. Given this background, how can foreign countries with advanced safety standards and international institutions such as the International Labor Organization help Chinese authorities improve coal mine safety?
The panelists are:
Dave Feickert - Statement
Dave Feickert, consultant in industrial relations, ergonomics and energy. A native of Sheffield, U.K. has served as a representative of the Trades Union Council to the Economic and Social Committee in Brussels, where he worked closely with the European Commission, Parliament, Council, and other European organizations. He has been a representative on the European Coal and Steel Industry Consultative Committee and has conducted seminars on health and safety for mineworkers in the Czech and Slovak Republics. His most recent publications include articles on the international coal market, mine privatization, and a paper on ¡°Miners, Safety and the Technological Revolution¡± at a safety conference in Lancashire, U.K.
Peter McNestry - Statement
Peter McNestry has served on numerous British, European, and international coal mine safety boards and committees. In 2000, Mr. McNestry was a member of the United Kingdom UNESCO National Commission and before that served with the British Coal Health Claims Monitoring Group. He has also served on the Safety and Mines Research Advisory Board and the European Safety and Health Commission for Coal and other Extractive Industries. Mr. McNestry currently lives in Goole, North Yorkshire.
Leo Carey, Executive Director of Government Services for the National Safety Council. Leo Carey currently directs a project to improve mine safety in China that is funded by the U. S. Department of Labor. The project is designed to work with relevant Chinese governmental bodies to develop rescue techniques and train miners and mine personnel in safe operational methods. Mr. Carey has directed a number of programs of health and safety for the U.S. Congress and various Executive Branch agencies. He is the director of the World Safety Congress project and serves as the project director for the NSC¡¯s ¡°Executive Assessment of Safety and Health Management Systems¡± for the Department of Defense.
Transcripts:
Coal Mine Safety in China: Can the Accident Rate be Reduced? (Text)
Coal Mine Safety in China: Can the Accident Rate be Reduced? (PDF)
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