Mining Incidents

Chinook Quarry: 102 MSHA citations Metal/Non-Metal

Controlled by Arne L Wirkkala
Naselle, Pacific County, WA  ·  Abandoned
MSHA Mine ID: 4501129

Chinook Quarry has $19K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 7 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.

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Fatalities
0
Total incidents
0
Years on record
Latest incident
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2001
102
citations
27
significant & substantial
$18,928
proposed penalties
$17,610
paid to date
93% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $1,318 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2001
47
inspections on record
740
inspection hours
n/a
citations per 100 inspection hours
This rate is recorded citations divided by MSHA inspection hours, per 100 hours. It reflects inspection effort, not mine size or production.
Rate withheld: 740 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

Chinook Quarry has $19K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 7 contested dockets.

Penalty disposition
Differences between proposed and paid penalties reflect both settlements and conference reductions and amounts still owed. Outstanding is the balance currently owed.
$19K
proposed penalties
$18K
current assessed
$18K
paid to date
$0
outstanding
102 assessments are final orders; 7 contested dockets.
Of $8K in penalties contested before the Commission, $7K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2020-01-28.
Source: MSHA assessed-violations and conference/litigation data, updated weekly.
Violation severity profile
Shares are computed over citations that carry the MSHA gravity and negligence coding; a small share of records are uncoded.
26.5%
significant & substantial
2.0%
high negligence or reckless
26.5%
reasonably likely or greater
62.7%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 8.8% low, 89.2% moderate, 2.0% high, 0.0% reckless.
Source: MSHA violations gravity and negligence coding, updated weekly.
When citations were contested
Contesting a citation before the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission is a lawful right. These figures state the public outcomes of that process, from MSHA's Contested Violations file.
21 citations taken to the federal commission · 21% of citations on record
  • Settled 21 · 100%
60%
S&S designation survived the contest
Counts a Significant & Substantial citation as surviving when a settlement or judge's decision kept the designation, or the contest was dismissed or defaulted so the citation stands as issued. Vacated and withdrawn citations, and settlements that removed the designation, count against.
of 5 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
16%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$8K proposed, $7K after decisions · industry: 39%
Source: MSHA Contested Violations file (public record), updated weekly. A dismissed or defaulted contest leaves the citation standing as issued; a vacated or withdrawn citation is removed from the violation record. Latest contest filed 2021-06-02.
Contested penalties
A reduction or dismissal at the Commission is a lawful outcome of contesting a proposed penalty. Figures are the proposed amount and the amount upheld in the docket's decision.
Largest penalties this mine contested before the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission, with the outcome on record.
Docket Decision Judge Year Proposed / upheld
WEST 2016-0501 Settlement Barbour 2016 $3K → $3K
WEST 2009-1208M Settlement Lesnick 2010 $2K → $2K
WEST 2016-0493 Settlement Barbour 2016 $1K → $781
WEST 2020-0341M Settlement Miller 2021 $873 → $861
WEST 2017-0252 Settlement Simonton 2017 $228 → $228
WEST 2016-0661 Settlement Rae 2016 $200 → $200
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.
Health sampling
A sample is a point in time compliance measurement, not an individual exposure history. These figures describe MSHA sampling records and do not establish causation or personal dose.

Metal and nonmetal contaminants (personal samples)
Many samples are screening measurements of substances with no applicable exposure limit; they are counted as samples but excluded from every over-limit figure. Over-limit shares use only limit-tested samples.

Last sampled: 2018-06-13, 8 years ago
0%
of limit-tested samples over the exposure limit
9
samples
1
limit-tested
Most sampled contaminants
  • Respirable dust, <.1mg7
  • Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz1
  • Unlisted Particulate, respirable, <1% Qtz1
Show the individual readings (9)
Date Contaminant Concentration Limit Conc / limit Occupation
2018-06-13 Respirable dust, <.1mg 0 Front-end Loader Operator
2018-06-13 Respirable dust, <.1mg 0 Crusher Oper/Worker
2016-11-16 Respirable dust, <.1mg 0 Front-end Loader Operator
2016-11-16 Respirable dust, <.1mg 0 Crusher Oper/Worker
2014-06-04 Unlisted Particulate, respirable, <1% Qtz 0.23 Crusher Oper/Worker
2014-06-04 Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz 0.3 1.24 0.24 Front-end Loader Operator
2009-11-19 Respirable dust, <.1mg 0 Front-end Loader Operator
2009-05-29 Respirable dust, <.1mg 0 Mechanic
2009-05-29 Respirable dust, <.1mg 0 Front-end Loader Operator
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly. Metal/nonmetal contaminant figures come from MSHA's Personal Health Samples and Area Samples files (public record), updated weekly.
Ownership history
  1. Naselle Rock & Asphalt Company 1983 to present
Source: MSHA controller and operator history, updated weekly.
Workforce and production
Year Employees
2023 1
2022 1
2021 1
2020 2
2019 3
2018 3
2017 3
2016 4
2015 3
2014 3
2013 3
2012 3
2011 3
2010 2
2009 3
2008 4
2007 3
2006 4
2005 3
2004 3
2003 3
2002 3
2001 3
2000 3
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

Chinook Quarry sits in Pacific County, Washington, where the Census mining category is 0.1% of county employment.

Local economic context
County figures come from the US Census Bureau's American Community Survey, 5-year pooled estimates, so the 2023 vintage covers 2019 through 2023. The Census category is 'mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction', which is broader than MSHA jurisdiction and includes oil and gas workers no mine employs. These figures describe the surrounding county, not this mine, and are not a factor in any specific incident.
Pacific County, Washington · Population 23,750
0.1%
Mining share of county employment
$62,350
Median household income
Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 5-year estimates.
Quarterly safety rates
Citations per million reported employee-hours. Rates begin in 2000, when MSHA's quarterly employment data starts; earlier incidents are counted but cannot be rate-adjusted. Quarters under 100,000 reported hours are greyed: too few hours for a stable rate.
Citations per million employee-hours, as reported to MSHA
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2023 Q2 2 0 0 0.0
2023 Q1 15 0 0 0.0
2022 Q4 19 0 0 0.0
2022 Q3 7 0 0 0.0
2022 Q2 22 0 0 0.0
2022 Q1 28 0 0 0.0
2021 Q4 49 0 0 0.0
2021 Q3 3 0 0 0.0
Show 85 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2021 Q2 4 0 0 0.0
2021 Q1 15 0 0 0.0
2020 Q4 1 0 0 0.0
2020 Q3 11 0 0 0.0
2020 Q2 66 0 0 0.0
2020 Q1 1,000 7 1 7000.0
2019 Q4 1,122 0 0 0.0
2019 Q3 1,241 0 0 0.0
2019 Q2 1,160 0 0 0.0
2019 Q1 1,161 0 0 0.0
2018 Q4 961 0 0 0.0
2018 Q3 1,574 0 0 0.0
2018 Q2 1,379 0 0 0.0
2018 Q1 1,246 1 0 802.6
2017 Q4 1,148 0 0 0.0
2017 Q3 928 0 0 0.0
2017 Q2 1,234 0 0 0.0
2017 Q1 997 0 0 0.0
2016 Q4 898 2 0 2227.2
2016 Q3 838 0 0 0.0
2016 Q2 978 4 0 4090.0
2016 Q1 954 8 1 8385.7
2015 Q4 792 0 0 0.0
2015 Q3 753 0 0 0.0
2015 Q2 1,027 0 0 0.0
2015 Q1 747 0 0 0.0
2014 Q4 1,027 1 0 973.7
2014 Q3 703 0 0 0.0
2014 Q2 853 0 0 0.0
2014 Q1 713 0 0 0.0
2013 Q4 948 0 0 0.0
2013 Q3 899 1 0 1112.3
2013 Q2 922 2 0 2169.2
2013 Q1 804 0 0 0.0
2012 Q4 795 0 0 0.0
2012 Q3 865 0 0 0.0
2012 Q1 843 3 0 3558.7
2011 Q4 948 0 0 0.0
2011 Q3 1,072 0 0 0.0
2011 Q2 1,233 3 0 2433.1
2011 Q1 823 0 0 0.0
2010 Q4 853 5 2 5861.7
2010 Q3 846 0 0 0.0
2010 Q2 652 1 0 1533.7
2010 Q1 751 0 0 0.0
2009 Q4 875 1 1 1142.9
2009 Q3 875 0 0 0.0
2009 Q2 901 2 1 2219.8
2009 Q1 1,149 0 0 0.0
2008 Q4 1,548 1 1 646.0
2008 Q3 1,304 0 0 0.0
2008 Q2 892 6 2 6726.5
2008 Q1 1,285 4 1 3112.8
2007 Q4 1,143 0 0 0.0
2007 Q3 1,004 0 0 0.0
2007 Q2 1,397 0 0 0.0
2007 Q1 946 5 1 5285.4
2006 Q4 1,173 0 0 0.0
2006 Q3 955 3 1 3141.4
2006 Q2 1,321 9 4 6813.0
2006 Q1 1,895 0 0 0.0
2005 Q4 1,672 0 0 0.0
2005 Q3 1,141 0 0 0.0
2005 Q2 1,225 0 0 0.0
2005 Q1 837 0 0 0.0
2004 Q4 1,182 6 1 5076.1
2004 Q3 946 3 2 3171.2
2004 Q2 1,184 0 0 0.0
2004 Q1 1,091 2 0 1833.2
2003 Q4 1,238 0 0 0.0
2003 Q3 1,081 2 0 1850.1
2003 Q2 1,153 0 0 0.0
2003 Q1 1,018 7 1 6876.2
2002 Q4 1,096 0 0 0.0
2002 Q3 953 10 7 10493.2
2002 Q2 930 0 0 0.0
2002 Q1 803 0 0 0.0
2001 Q4 868 2 0 2304.1
2001 Q3 963 0 0 0.0
2001 Q2 1,069 1 0 935.5
2001 Q1 952 0 0 0.0
2000 Q4 937 0 0 0.0
2000 Q3 861 0 0 0.0
2000 Q2 1,124 0 0 0.0
2000 Q1 1,071 0 0 0.0

No reportable incidents on file.

MSHA has no recorded reportable accidents for this mine in the current dataset. New reports appear here within a week of being filed.