Higley Wash Plant has $68K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 5 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.
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Fatalities
0
Total incidents
7
Years on record
2014–2022
Latest incident
Apr 2022
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2014
37
citations
11
significant & substantial
$67,604
proposed penalties
$45,888
paid to date
68% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $21,716 gap.
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: 390 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
Higley Wash Plant has $68K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 5 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.
$68K
proposed penalties
$46K
current assessed
$46K
paid to date
$0
outstanding
36 assessments are final orders; 5 contested dockets.
Of $82K in penalties contested before the Commission, $41K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2022-04-06.
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.
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.
8citations taken to the federal commission · 22% of citations on record
Settled
6 · 75%
Vacated or withdrawn
2 · 25%
63%
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 Vacated and withdrawn citations, and settlements that removed the designation, count against.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 8 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
50%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$82K proposed, $41K 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 2022-06-01.
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.
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: 2021-09-28, 4 years ago
10
samples
0
limit-tested
Most sampled contaminants
Respirable dust, <.1mg8
Unlisted Particulate, respirable, <1% Qtz2
Show the individual readings (10)
Date
Contaminant
Concentration
Limit
Conc / limit
Occupation
2021-09-28
Respirable dust, <.1mg
0
Truck Driver
2021-09-28
Respirable dust, <.1mg
0
Washer Operator
2021-09-28
Respirable dust, <.1mg
0
Front-end Loader Operator
2021-09-28
Respirable dust, <.1mg
0
Crusher Oper/Worker
2017-12-12
Respirable dust, <.1mg
0
Crusher Oper/Worker
2017-12-12
Unlisted Particulate, respirable, <1% Qtz
0.14
Washer Operator
2017-12-12
Respirable dust, <.1mg
0
Front-end Loader Operator
2015-11-17
Respirable dust, <.1mg
0
Front-end Loader Operator
2015-11-17
Unlisted Particulate, respirable, <1% Qtz
0.16
Mechanic
2015-11-17
Respirable dust, <.1mg
0
Laborer, Bullgang
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.
Higley Wash Plant recorded 0.00 reportable injury cases per 100 full-time workers in 2021.
Injury rate, 2021
ⓘThis rate is reportable injury cases per 100 full-time-equivalent workers per year, computed as 200,000 times cases divided by MSHA operator-reported employee-hours. Cases are injuries MSHA graded degree 01 through 07; accident-only events that hurt no one are excluded, and so are contractor injuries, whose hours do not attach to a single mine. Rates begin in 2000, when quarterly employment reporting starts, and are withheld below 20,000 hours in a year.
0.00
total case rate
0.00
days-away rate
0.000
fatality rate
Below average. The US metal and nonmetal mining average was 1.87 and the all-US-mining average was 2.19 cases per 100 workers.
In Arizona, metal and nonmetal mining averaged 2.33 cases per 100 workers that year.
Under 100,000 employee-hours were reported that year, so a single case moves the rate by two or more. Read the figure as approximate.
Year
total case rate
days-away
fatal
2021 *
0.00
0.00
0.000
2020 *
7.05
0.00
0.000
2019 *
7.59
0.00
0.000
2018 *
7.07
0.00
0.000
2017 *
0.00
0.00
0.000
2016 *
5.79
0.00
0.000
2015 *
0.00
0.00
0.000
2014 *
7.41
0.00
0.000
* Fewer than 100,000 employee-hours that year; the rate is less stable.
Source: injury cases from MSHA accident and injury records; employee-hours from MSHA quarterly employment reports. Rate is cases per 100 full-time-equivalent workers, operator employees only.
Source: MSHA controller and operator history, updated weekly.
Workforce and production
Year
Employees
2022
13
2021
11
2020
10
2019
11
2018
12
2017
11
2016
13
2015
15
2014
13
2013
3
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.
Higley Wash Plant sits in Maricopa County, Arizona, where the Census mining category is 0.2% 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.
Maricopa County, Arizona · Population 4,491,987
0.2%
Mining share of county employment
$85,518
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
2022 Q3
4,920
0
0
0.0
2022 Q2
10,805
3
0
277.6
2022 Q1
11,071
0
0
0.0
2021 Q4
8,465
1
0
118.1
2021 Q3
8,194
0
0
0.0
2021 Q2
6,819
1
0
146.6
2021 Q1
7,469
0
0
0.0
2020 Q4
6,937
2
1
288.3
Show 28 earlier quartersHide earlier quarters
Quarter
Hours worked
Citations
S&S
Per 1M hrs
2020 Q3
7,152
0
0
0.0
2020 Q2
6,891
0
0
0.0
2020 Q1
7,406
2
1
270.1
2019 Q4
6,497
2
2
307.8
2019 Q3
6,432
0
0
0.0
2019 Q2
6,773
0
0
0.0
2019 Q1
6,641
0
0
0.0
2018 Q4
6,047
0
0
0.0
2018 Q3
6,285
0
0
0.0
2018 Q2
7,561
1
0
132.3
2018 Q1
8,380
0
0
0.0
2017 Q4
7,091
1
0
141.0
2017 Q3
6,213
0
0
0.0
2017 Q2
5,641
1
0
177.3
2017 Q1
6,863
0
0
0.0
2016 Q4
8,969
1
0
111.5
2016 Q3
7,784
0
0
0.0
2016 Q2
9,232
5
1
541.6
2016 Q1
8,543
0
0
0.0
2015 Q4
7,852
4
1
509.4
2015 Q3
8,769
0
0
0.0
2015 Q2
7,819
0
0
0.0
2015 Q1
7,397
0
0
0.0
2014 Q4
8,418
1
0
118.8
2014 Q3
7,194
0
0
0.0
2014 Q2
7,378
2
0
271.1
2014 Q1
3,995
2
0
500.6
2013 Q4
1,113
0
0
0.0
No fatalities recorded at this mine.
Reportable incidents
7 on file
2022 · 1 incident
April 5, 2022AZ · Metal/Non-Metallaborer, blacksmith, bull gang, parts runner, roustabout, pick-up man, pitmanHANDTOOLS (NONPOWERED)
Removing Drain cap with a pipe wrench while applying pressure it broke loose causing EE to slam EE's right hand into the bolts that were sticking out. Major swelling to EE's right hand
MEASURING SUPPORT LEGS FOR A CONVEYOR BELT. LEGS WERE BEING LIFTED WITH FORKLIFT TO FULLY EXTEND THEM, A BRACE SUPPORT SWUNG DOWNWARD AND SLICED ACROSS LEFT HAND CUTTING TWO FINGERS
While operating a 70-ton rigid frame haul truck, EE backed up to the berm on the South end of the pad. It appears the stockpile under the back wheels fell away from under the truck, causing the truck to slide off the stockpile and turned over backwards. It appears that EE impacted the roof of the cab, causing serious injury.
Working on the durability cell cutting silicone liners with a straight razor. While holding it down with EE's left hand and cutting with EE's right EE cut through EE's glove and into EE's left thumb.
2016 · 1 incident
January 28, 2016AZ · Metal/Non-Metalbulldozer operator, universal operator, heavy equipment operator, operating engineerSTRIKING OR BUMPING