Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, May 6, 1994                   TAG: 9405060128
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

MINING AGENCY SUES OVER DELINQUENT FINES

The civil fines against Cedar Coal Co. stem from 53 violations of mine safety and health laws, including 30 submissions of coal dust samples collected by a person with improper certification since August 1993.

Mine operators must send MSHA samples of coal mine dust in the air underground as part of the agency's program to protect miners against lung disease.

MSHA has asked U.S. Attorney Robert Crouch to seek a judgment in Roanoke U.S. District Court against Cedar Coal for the delinquent civil fines, as well as several thousand dollars more in interest, penalties and administrative costs.

The law gives a mining company 30 days to contest or pay a fine levied by MSHA, and the agency said Cedar Coal has failed to do either and has not responded to requests for payment.

Cedar Coal is not listed in the telephone directory and an officer could not be reached for comment.

``Most mine operators pay their MSHA fines in a timely way,'' J. Davitt McAteer, assistant secretary of labor for mine safety and health, said in a statement. ``We will not allow other mine operators to ignore mine safety and health penalties.''