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Smith Pit: 139 MSHA citations Metal/Non-Metal

Trinity Sand and Gravel · Surface
Controlled by John J Buick
weaverville, Trinity County, CA  ·  Abandoned
MSHA Mine ID: 0405007

Smith Pit has $53K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 8 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.

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Fatalities
0
Total incidents
1
Years on record
1990
Latest incident
Apr 1990
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2001
139
citations
32
significant & substantial
$52,993
proposed penalties
$26,109
paid to date
49% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $26,884 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2001
41
inspections on record
654
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: 654 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
Imminent-danger orders
ⓘ A Section 107(a) order removes miners from an area when an inspector finds an imminent danger. Each order is lifted once the condition is corrected, so this counts orders issued, not orders now in effect.
1
Section 107(a) orders
Most recent order: 2017-08-22.
On record since 2017.
Source: MSHA imminent-danger order records, updated weekly.

Smith Pit has $53K in proposed MSHA penalties and $0 outstanding across 8 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.
$53K
proposed penalties
$26K
current assessed
$26K
paid to date
$0
outstanding
137 assessments are final orders; 8 contested dockets.
Of $43K in penalties contested before the Commission, $9K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2021-02-11.
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.
23.4%
significant & substantial
8.0%
high negligence or reckless
23.4%
reasonably likely or greater
57.7%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 7.3% low, 84.7% moderate, 8.0% 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.
22 citations taken to the federal commission · 16% of citations on record
  • Settled 21 · 95%
  • Vacated or withdrawn 1 · 5%
86%
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 7 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
84%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$39K proposed, $6K 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 2011-07-05.
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 2011-672M Settlement Manning 2013 $19K → $2K
WEST 2011-725M Settlement Manning 2013 $7K → $110
WEST 2011-1191M Settlement Manning 2013 $6K → $2K
WEST 2011-54M Settlement Manning 2013 $6K → $1K
WEST20010617M Settlement Barbour 2002 $4K → $2K
WEST20000161M Settlement Manning 2000 $697 → $517
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: 2015-06-02, 11 years ago
0%
of limit-tested samples over the exposure limit
5
samples
3
limit-tested
Most sampled contaminants
  • Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz3
  • Respirable dust, <.1mg2
Show the individual readings (5)
Date Contaminant Concentration Limit Conc / limit Occupation
2015-06-02 Respirable dust, <.1mg 0 Washer Operator
2015-06-02 Respirable dust, <.1mg 0 Front-end Loader Operator
2010-07-13 Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz 0.63 1.77 0.36 Front-end Loader Operator
2009-04-22 Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz 0.34 1.05 0.32 Front-end Loader Operator
2005-07-28 Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz 0.6 1.08 0.56 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. Coffee Creek Trinity Sand & Gravel Inc 1989 to 1991
  2. Concrete Aggregates Products Inc 1991 to 2018
  3. Trinity Sand and Gravel 2018 to present
Source: MSHA controller and operator history, updated weekly.
Workforce and production
Year Employees
2021 2
2020 3
2019 2
2018 1
2017 3
2016 2
2015 3
2014 2
2013 3
2012 2
2011 3
2010 2
2009 2
2008 3
2007 3
2006 4
2005 3
2004 3
2003 2
2002 3
2001 3
2000 3
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.

Smith Pit sits in Trinity County, California, where the Census mining category is 1.5% 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.
Trinity County, California · Population 15,886
1.5%
Mining share of county employment
$53,498
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
2021 Q3 45 0 0 0.0
2021 Q2 25 0 0 0.0
2021 Q1 799 5 0 6257.8
2020 Q4 880 0 0 0.0
2020 Q3 460 0 0 0.0
2020 Q2 1,250 7 0 5600.0
2020 Q1 1,590 7 0 4402.5
2019 Q4 393 0 0 0.0
Show 79 earlier quarters
Quarter Hours worked Citations S&S Per 1M hrs
2019 Q3 368 0 0 0.0
2019 Q2 478 0 0 0.0
2019 Q1 399 10 1 25062.7
2018 Q4 477 0 0 0.0
2018 Q3 779 0 0 0.0
2018 Q2 558 0 0 0.0
2018 Q1 448 0 0 0.0
2017 Q4 545 0 0 0.0
2017 Q3 990 12 7 12121.2
2017 Q2 484 0 0 0.0
2017 Q1 80 0 0 0.0
2016 Q4 918 0 0 0.0
2016 Q3 764 0 0 0.0
2016 Q2 585 5 0 8547.0
2016 Q1 120 0 0 0.0
2015 Q4 305 0 0 0.0
2015 Q3 1,317 0 0 0.0
2015 Q2 340 8 2 23529.4
2015 Q1 0 0 0
2014 Q4 818 0 0 0.0
2014 Q3 861 5 2 5807.2
2014 Q2 0 0 0
2014 Q1 0 0 0
2013 Q4 1,057 0 0 0.0
2013 Q3 1,403 0 0 0.0
2013 Q2 517 0 0 0.0
2013 Q1 190 0 0 0.0
2012 Q4 1,034 0 0 0.0
2012 Q3 1,185 0 0 0.0
2012 Q2 853 0 0 0.0
2012 Q1 0 0 0
2011 Q4 1,126 1 0 888.1
2011 Q3 1,648 2 0 1213.6
2011 Q2 211 0 0 0.0
2011 Q1 0 6 1
2010 Q4 565 0 0 0.0
2010 Q3 1,159 18 4 15530.6
2010 Q2 385 0 0 0.0
2010 Q1 25 7 2 280000.0
2009 Q4 630 0 0 0.0
2009 Q3 885 0 0 0.0
2009 Q2 598 9 1 15050.2
2009 Q1 0 0 0
2008 Q4 1,012 0 0 0.0
2008 Q3 813 3 0 3690.0
2008 Q2 885 0 0 0.0
2008 Q1 914 0 0 0.0
2007 Q4 1,449 0 0 0.0
2007 Q3 1,057 0 0 0.0
2007 Q2 1,024 1 0 976.6
2007 Q1 829 0 0 0.0
2006 Q4 1,294 2 0 1545.6
2006 Q3 1,072 2 1 1865.7
2006 Q2 1,041 0 0 0.0
2006 Q1 722 0 0 0.0
2005 Q4 1,112 0 0 0.0
2005 Q3 1,253 6 1 4788.5
2005 Q2 514 0 0 0.0
2005 Q1 936 0 0 0.0
2004 Q4 1,481 0 0 0.0
2004 Q3 2,198 0 0 0.0
2004 Q2 1,348 0 0 0.0
2004 Q1 441 8 2 18140.6
2003 Q4 1,000 0 0 0.0
2003 Q3 1,019 0 0 0.0
2003 Q2 885 0 0 0.0
2003 Q1 223 0 0 0.0
2002 Q4 591 0 0 0.0
2002 Q3 1,066 0 0 0.0
2002 Q2 805 11 5 13664.6
2002 Q1 56 0 0 0.0
2001 Q4 675 0 0 0.0
2001 Q3 928 4 3 4310.3
2001 Q2 1,016 0 0 0.0
2001 Q1 756 0 0 0.0
2000 Q4 1,329 0 0 0.0
2000 Q3 1,431 0 0 0.0
2000 Q2 893 0 0 0.0
2000 Q1 252 0 0 0.0
No fatalities recorded at this mine.

Reportable incidents

1 on file

1990 · 1 incident

April 7, 1990 CA · Metal/Non-Metal laborer, blacksmith, bull gang, parts runner, roustabout, pick-up man, pitman HANDTOOLS (NONPOWERED)
Coffee Creek Trinity Sand & Gravel Inc · Struck by... (Not Elsewhere Classified)

SHOVELING OUT MATERIAL FROM CRUSHER AND CONVEYOR AREA. FELT SOMETHING IN HIS EYE. HE AND FOREMAN LOOKED FOR IT BUT COULDNT FIND ANYTHING, THOUGHT IT WAS JUST SCRATCHED AND FINISHED OUT THE DAY . MONDAY MORNING THE EYE WAS RED AND SWOLLEN, HEREPORTED THE ACCIDENT TO THE OFFICE AND WENT TO A DR. PIECE OF FOREIGN MATERIAL IN HIS EYE, DR REMOVED.