Mining Inspections Improve

{Washington, D.C.}…A U.S. Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement oversight report shows that 87.7 percent of the surface mining inspections required last year in Kentucky were completed, up from 83 percent in the three previous years but down from the state's historic rate of 98 percent. The report also showed the coal industry's compliance with environmental standards was 70 percent. Natural Resources Commissioner Steve Hohmann says the inspection frequency improved to 99 percent in the most recent full quarter, just after the period covered by the report.