Researchers say they've linked silica dust directly to severe black lung disease

PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."Silica particles can get lodged in a miner's lungs permanently
Silica exposure comes from miners cutting into sandstone as they mine coal, which has become more common in recent decades as larger coal deposits were exhausted in Appalachia. As the mining machines operate, the quartz in the sandstone turns into sharp silica particles that are easily inhaled and can lodge in the lungs permanently.

Cohen and others are calling for the federal government to toughen Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) regulations on silica dust in mines.

United Mine Workers of America President Cecil E. Roberts tells NPR in a statement that the study "proves what we have already known, that silica is a leading cause behind the rise in cases of progressive massive fibrosis.

"I testified before Congress in 2019 on this exact issue and nothing was done," Roberts says. "Now there is no excuse. MSHA needs to act to enforce a silica standard to protect today's miners. Failure to act risks the lives of thousands."

Shortly after President Biden took office, the Labor Department's Inspector General said MSHA's 50-year-old standard for regulating silica dust was "out of date" and difficult to enforce.

Mine regulators at MSHA have said they are studying a possible update to the regulation, which remains less stringent than the silica standard for other industries.

"I've heard good things from the Biden administration," Cohen says, "but we'd really want to push this through while we have good data and political motivation to do it."

For its part, the National Mining Association, a trade association for mining companies and equipment makers, has argued that the amount of silica found in mine dust samples has decreased in recent years and has urged regulators to allow mining companies to use personal protective equipment as a strategy to comply with any new silica standard."