WASHINGTON D.C. – The National Mining Association (NMA) today recognized Usibelli Coal Mine (UCM) for its CORESafety® certification. CORESafety is the NMA initiative with the objective of zero fatalities and a 50 percent reduction in mining’s injury rate within five years. Usibelli joins 10 other companies whose operations have been independently certified under NMA’s signature safety initiative.
“We celebrate Usibelli’s dedication to safety,” said Rich Nolan, NMA President and CEO. “Participation in the CORESafety program has already helped companies across the industry increase safety awareness and vigilance, prioritizing the miners who we depend on for our modern way of life. Our CORESafety member companies are leaders in mining safety and health management, and Usibelli’s track record clearly shows leadership in this field.”
“CORESafety isn’t a program that expires, it’s a system that has become part of our culture,” said UCM president and CEO, Joe Usibelli Jr. “Recently, we set an all-time high safety record of 1085 days without a lost time incident – and that is because CORESafety is a part of our fabric.”
CORESafety is a risk-based mine safety and health management system developed by NMA. CORESafety participants agree to: commit to the CORESafety system; implement a functionally-equivalent version of the CORESafety safety and health management system; submit to NMA annual self-assessments of progress toward implementation of the CORESafety safety and health management system; and, if the company elects to become or maintain CORESafety certification, complete a thorough third- party assessment of its safety and health management system to verify that it is functionally equivalent to CORESafety and submit the assessment report to NMA. SomaHive LLC of Parker, Colo., conducted the independent, third-party certification audit on July 21-22.
For more information on the CORESafety system, visit www.coresafety.org, and to view a list of participating companies click here.
About Usibelli Coal Mine
Founded in 1943 by Emil Usibelli, Usibelli Coal Mine is located near the town of Healy and is 115 miles south of Fairbanks and 250 miles north of Anchorage adjacent to the Parks Highway and Alaska Railroad. UCM currently has a workforce of 98 employees, and operates year-round. Mine production has grown from 10,000 tons in 1943 to approximately 1-million tons of coal per year. Currently the only operational coal mine in Alaska, UCM is supported by the most modern mining equipment and state-of-the-art engineering. Today, UCM supplies coal to five Interior Alaska power plants and over the years has exported coal to Chile, South Korea, Japan and several other Pacific Rim destinations.
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