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NSSGA hires vice president of membership
Pamala Bouchard joined NSSGA this week as vice president of membership. Bouchard’s job is to develop and implement the association’s annual membership recruitment and retention programs, conduct activities to promote member participation and new member orientation, and provide timely service to member and non-member requests. In addition to her direct membership responsibilities, Bouchard assumes oversight for NSSGA’s meeting planning and the association’s small producers roundtable. Keep Reading
NSSGA supporting EPA’s air quality standard proposal
NSSGA is endorsing its support for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's proposal to retain the current coarse particulate national ambient air quality standard. “If the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency were to proceed with reducing the current standard by half, as had been considered, a typical aggregates facility would have to cut production by up to two-thirds in order to comply, leading to additional plant closures and significant job loss at a time when aggregates production is down an average of 40 percent across the nation,” says Joy Pinniger, NSSGA president and CEO. “We are pleased EPA has not added additional burdens to our struggling industry.” Last November, the Farm Dust Regulation Prevention Act, a bipartisan bill preventing EPA from imposing more stringent federal dust standards and exempting nuisance dust from EPA regulation, passed the U.S. House of Representatives. NSSGA Government Affairs Chairman Pete Lien, the president of Pete Lien & Sons in Rapid City, S.D., testified on Oct. 25 in support of the bill before a hearing of the House Energy & Power… Keep Reading
Study shows rehabilitation effective for former aggregate sites
A study being released by the Ontario Stone, Sand & Gravel Association (OSSGA) shows that rehabilitated aggregate sites are being successfully integrated into their communities and surrounding landscapes once rehabilitation has been completed. OSSGA retained a team of planners and ecologists to review 337 sites that had been licensed pits and quarries. The sites were fully extracted and rehabilitated to new land uses in the Oak Ridges Moraine Plan Area, Niagara Escarpment Plan Area, Greenbelt Plan Area, Lake Simcoe Protection Plan Area, as well as Metropolitan Toronto and the City of Ottawa. Field visits produced data on each property in the study, including amount of tree coverage and native vegetation, as well as current site use, surrounding land uses and municipal zoning. Among the findings was that the land uses of the sites are natural (32 percent), residential (15 percent), recreational (13 percent), water (11 percent), open space (11 percent), with other occurrences of industrial, commercial institutional and other land uses. There is about 17 percent tree coverage on the… Keep Reading
Main says enhanced enforcement strategies are working
Despite a number of challenges confronting the mining industry over the past two and a half years, MSHA Assistant Secretary Joseph Main says the actions being taken by the agency and many in the industry are moving mine safety and health in the right direction. Main made that remark, among others, at a one-day seminar last week sponsored by Penn State University’s miner training program near Pittsburgh. “Following the April 2010 explosion of the Upper Big Branch Mine, one of my most significant challenges was keeping MSHA focused on our overall mission and agenda to advance mine safety,” Main says. “That tragedy clearly identified that more needed to be done to provide miners with a voice in the workplace, and that MSHA needed to more aggressively use its tools under the Mine Act to enforce the law. We began taking actions immediately after the disaster, and we are still continuing to implement a number of initiatives to make mines safer.” Three months ago, the agency released the results of its… Keep Reading
Will natural gas boost your bottom line?
Gasoline and diesel prices will probably never be as low as they once were. But another fuel, natural gas, is positioning itself to play a role in your operation and boost your bottom line in the coming years. More natural gas is coming with the recent introduction of horizontal drilling as part of the longtime hydraulic fracturing process. For you, this means a more abundant supply of natural gas, a domestically available product and better pricing than the fuels for which the United States has become dependent on the Middle East. Among the industry companies catching onto natural gas developments are Caterpillar Inc. and Westport Innovations Inc., which collectively announced an agreement last week to develop natural gas technologies for off-road equipment like mining trucks. Programs are already being developed for engines, combustion technology and fuel systems, and the companies expect commercial production to begin in about five years. “Our customers have been demanding these types of products,” says Steve Fisher, vice president of Caterpillar’s Large Power Systems Division, in… Keep Reading
Atlas Copco appoints Southeast store manager
Jason Blais has been appointed Atlas Copco’s Southeast store manager. Blais will be responsible for the day-to-day management of stores in Atlanta, Miami and Nashville, Tenn. Blais has served Atlas Copco the last 15 years as a service technician, demo specialist, trainer, direct sales representative, district manager and store manager. Blais’ most recent position was as down-the-hole product manager for Atlas Copco Secoroc rock-drilling tools. The three stores Blais will be responsible for carry a range of Atlas Copco products, and each store caters to different industries based on the areas they serve. The stores carry Atlas Copco construction, drilling, crushing and screening, geotechnical drilling and exploration and compressor equipment, as well as Dynapac road construction equipment. Keep Reading
New Hyundai Construction Equipment dealer in Colorado
Hyundai Construction Equipment Americas Inc. has appointed Van’s Equipment as an authorized dealer in Colorado. Van's Equipment will now carry Hyundai¹s entire line of construction equipment, which consists of crawler excavators, wheel loaders, wheeled excavators, mini-excavators and skid-steers. The company will support Hyundai from its Denver-area branch location. Keep Reading
Xylem celebrating grand opening of Indianapolis location
Xylem is hosting an open house this Friday, June 15 to celebrate the opening of its Indianapolis location. The open house will be from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Xylem is located at 7615 West New York St. Focused on rental and sales of dewatering systems, the Indianapolis branch will offer a range of Flygt and Godwin pumps and related equipment. Exhibits on pump applications in mining, construction, municipal and industrial settings will be part of the open house. Keep Reading
MSHA promoting summer water safety through program
MSHA, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and the Ohio Aggregates and Industrial Minerals Association (OAIMA) are collaborating to promote summer water safety through the Stay-Out and Stay-Alive program. Now in its 14th year, the program warns outdoor enthusiasts, ATV participants and young people about the dangers of playing and swimming on mine property. Since 1999, nearly 300 people have lost their lives in recreational accidents at mine properties. Nearly half the victims were between 15 and 25 years old. “With kids across the country on summer break, the temptation to swim in an abandoned quarry can be hard to overcome,” says Joseph Main, assistant secretary of labor for mine safety and health. “Together we can more effectively spread the word about the potential dangers of playing on mine property.” OAIMA is urging all Ohioans to observe and comply with “No Trespassing” signs and other warnings. The association is also advising parents to warn young people about the dangers of swimming in any unguarded body of water. Keep Reading
