What are Dakota Quartz Plant's MSHA penalties?

Dakota Quartz Plant has $39K in proposed MSHA penalties on record, with $0 currently outstanding across 4 contested dockets.

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Dakota Quartz Plant: 132 MSHA citations Metal/Non-Metal

Mineral Technology Corporation · Facility

Controlled by Jeffrey L Cullum

Custer, Pennington County, SD · Abandoned

MSHA Mine ID: 3900670

Dakota Quartz Plant has $39K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 4 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 2000

132

citations

significant & substantial

$39,376

proposed penalties

$38,276

paid to date

97% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $1,100 gap.

Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.

Inspection activity

MSHA inspections since 2000

inspections on record

679

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: 679 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.

Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.

Penalty disposition

ⓘ

Differences between proposed and paid penalties reflect both settlements and conference reductions and amounts still owed. Outstanding is the balance currently owed.

$39K

proposed penalties

$38K

current assessed

$38K

paid to date

outstanding

131 assessments are final orders; 4 contested dockets.

Of $7K in penalties contested before the Commission, $5K was upheld in final decisions.

As of the most recent assessment on 2012-12-18.

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.

30.5%

significant & substantial

9.2%

high negligence or reckless

31.3%

reasonably likely or greater

48.1%

permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs

Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 11.5% low, 79.4% moderate, 9.2% 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.

18 citations taken to the federal commission · 14% of citations on record

Settled 11 · 61%
Stood as issued 7 · 39%

100%

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 4 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%

Penalty reduction in decided contests

$5K proposed, $5K 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 2011-11-03.

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
CENT 2012-119M	Settlement	Lesnick	2012	$4K → $4K
CENT20020145M	Settlement	Zielinski	2002	$1K → $200
CENT 2009-215M	Default	Lesnick	2011	$700 → $700
CENT 2009-214M	Settlement	Manning	2012	$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: 2010-01-27, 16 years ago

16%

of limit-tested samples over the exposure limit

samples

limit-tested

Most sampled contaminants

Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz153 over
Unlisted Particulate, respirable, <1% Qtz3
Aluminum oxide fumes2
Arsenic fumes2

Show the individual readings (52)

Date	Contaminant	Concentration	Limit	Conc / limit	Occupation
2006-04-18	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.28	0.27	1.04	Washer Operator
2001-05-15	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.61	0.57	1.07	Laborer, Bullgang
2001-05-15	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.43	0.19	2.26	Ball Mill Operator
2010-01-27	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.27	0.98	0.28	Belt Cleaner
2010-01-27	Unlisted Particulate, respirable, <1% Qtz	0.18			Dry Screen Plant Operator
2008-03-26	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.34	1.05	0.32	Laborer, Bullgang
2008-03-26	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.4	2.41	0.17	Ball Mill Operator
2008-01-03	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.34	0.49	0.69	Laborer, Bullgang
2008-01-03	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.33	0.55	0.60	Ball Mill Operator
2006-04-18	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.19	0.3	0.63	Washer Operator
2005-08-10	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.5	1.71	0.29	Laborer, Bullgang
2005-08-10	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.91	2.33	0.39	Mechanic
2003-12-18	Magnesium oxide fumes	0.04	20	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Manganese fumes	0.14	5	0.03	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Molybdenum fumes	0	20	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Nickel fumes	0	3	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Titanium dioxide fumes	0	20	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Vanadium fumes	0	50	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Zinc oxide fumes	0.03	10	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Aluminum oxide fumes	0	10	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Arsenic fumes	0	500	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Beryllium fumes	0	2	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Cadmium oxide fumes	0	100	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Chromium, insoluble	0	1	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Cobalt fumes	0	100	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Iron oxide fumes	0.28	10	0.03	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Lead fumes	0	150	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Magnesium oxide fumes	0	10	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Manganese fumes	0.05	5	0.01	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Molybdenum fumes	0	10	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Nickel fumes	0	1	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Titanium dioxide fumes	0	10	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Vanadium fumes	0	50	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Zinc oxide fumes	0	5	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Copper fumes	0	100	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.18	0.58	0.31	Dry Screen Plant Operator
2003-12-18	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.26	1.61	0.16	Crusher Oper/Worker
2003-12-18	Aluminum oxide fumes	0.01	20	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Arsenic fumes	0	1500	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Beryllium fumes	0	6	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Cadmium oxide fumes	0	100	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Chromium, insoluble	0	3	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Cobalt fumes	0	300	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Copper fumes	3.92	300	0.01	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Iron oxide fumes	0.54	20	0.03	Welder, etc.
2003-12-18	Lead fumes	0	450	0.00	Welder, etc.
2003-01-29	Respirable dust, <.1mg	0			Supervisor, Co. Official
2003-01-29	Unlisted Particulate, respirable, <1% Qtz	0.85			Welder, etc.
2003-01-29	Unlisted Particulate, respirable, <1% Qtz	0.28			Dry Screen Plant Operator
2001-08-21	Respirable dust, <.1mg	0			Ball Mill Operator
2001-05-15	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	1.14	1.26	0.90	Laborer, Bullgang
2001-05-15	Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz	0.28	0.43	0.65	Mechanic

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

Pacer Corp 1950 to 1987
Mineral Technology Corporation 1987 to present

Source: MSHA controller and operator history, updated weekly.

Workforce and production

Year	Employees
2013	0
2012	5
2011	6
2010	4
2009	4
2008	4
2007	2
2006	3
2005	4
2004	4
2003	6
2002	5
2001	6
2000	6

Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

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.

Pennington County, South Dakota · Population 112,081

0.9%

Mining share of county employment

$70,768

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	Per 1M hrs
2013 Q4	40	0	0.0
2013 Q2	0	0
2013 Q1	0	0
2012 Q4	888	1	1126.1
2012 Q3	1,390	0	0.0
2012 Q2	3,146	0	0.0
2012 Q1	2,841	2	704.0
2011 Q4	3,820	1	261.8

Show 47 earlier quarters

Quarter	Hours worked	Citations	S&S	Per 1M hrs
2011 Q3	3,410	9	3	2639.3
2011 Q2	2,644	1	0	378.2
2011 Q1	1,981	11	4	5552.8
2010 Q4	2,798	0	0	0.0
2010 Q3	1,972	0	0	0.0
2010 Q2	1,669	10	6	5991.6
2010 Q1	1,383	26	5	18799.7
2009 Q4	1,382	0	0	0.0
2009 Q3	1,395	0	0	0.0
2009 Q2	1,243	5	2	4022.5
2009 Q1	1,485	0	0	0.0
2008 Q4	1,576	9	1	5710.7
2008 Q3	1,767	0	0	0.0
2008 Q2	1,721	0	0	0.0
2008 Q1	1,572	4	0	2544.5
2007 Q4	1,420	0	0	0.0
2007 Q3	1,963	0	0	0.0
2007 Q2	1,813	4	1	2206.3
2007 Q1	1,873	0	0	0.0
2006 Q4	1,709	4	0	2340.6
2006 Q3	2,065	0	0	0.0
2006 Q2	1,552	2	1	1288.7
2006 Q1	1,106	3	2	2712.5
2005 Q4	1,878	0	0	0.0
2005 Q3	1,747	0	0	0.0
2005 Q2	1,144	0	0	0.0
2005 Q1	1,180	0	0	0.0
2004 Q4	1,199	0	0	0.0
2004 Q3	973	0	0	0.0
2004 Q2	1,307	0	0	0.0
2004 Q1	1,727	0	0	0.0
2003 Q4	2,064	7	4	3391.5
2003 Q3	974	0	0	0.0
2003 Q2	876	0	0	0.0
2003 Q1	1,254	0	0	0.0
2002 Q4	1,433	0	0	0.0
2002 Q3	1,881	0	0	0.0
2002 Q2	1,478	0	0	0.0
2002 Q1	1,938	4	2	2064.0
2001 Q4	1,554	0	0	0.0
2001 Q3	1,391	2	1	1437.8
2001 Q2	2,327	7	0	3008.2
2001 Q1	4,828	0	0	0.0
2000 Q4	2,333	0	0	0.0
2000 Q3	2,203	3	0	1361.8
2000 Q2	1,739	13	6	7475.6
2000 Q1	2,005	4	2	1995.0

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.

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Dakota Quartz Plant has $39K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 4 contested dockets.

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.

Dakota Quartz Plant sits in Pennington County, South Dakota, where the Census mining category is 0.9% of county employment.

Related mines

Other mines operated by Mineral Technology Corporation

Other mines in SD

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.