Anti-terror laws have miner consequences

Homeland security legislation is keeping miners from buying dynamite.
LYKENS, Pa. (AP) -- Darryl Koperna has spent most of his life taking anthracite coal from dark, dusty veins below the ground. He is currently getting 30 tons a day from his S & amp;M Coal Co. mine in central Pennsylvania.
But Koperna is down to his last few sticks of dynamite, and because of new federal regulations, he doesn't know when he'll be allowed to buy more. So instead of tunneling to a new vein -- one Koperna thinks could triple his mine's output -- he's sweeping up the scraps he'd left behind on previous trips into the mine in Lykens.
"I've been running some excess coal that I'd already fired loose and taken out. But I've already had to lay off one guy after I worked hard to get a guy," Koperna said. "I'll soon be done -- I'll have to look for a job. I don't have ... income. None whatsoever."
Koperna, like other coal miners, is caught up in broader regulations surrounding the Safe Explosives Act, passed last November as part of broader regulations surrounding the Safe Explosive homeland security legislation.
Federal permit
The act requires anyone handling explosives to have a federal permit, issued by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. But Koperna and others, who previously needed only state permits, say that they weren't informed of the new rules until it was too late.
About 20 miners gathered at a Pottsville hotel Monday to fill out permit applications.
"If they would have gave us a timely warning, we wouldn't have had this problem," said David A. Lucas, co-owner of D & amp;D Anthracite Coal Co. "As it is right now, some mines will probably run out of powder this week, and we're looking at least another week or two before we can buy more supplies."
Since the Safe Explosives Act was signed, the ATF has worked with major industry groups to get the word out about the new regulations. Mike Price, ATF area supervisor in Lansdale for much of eastern Pennsylvania, said his agency was not used to working with miners and relied on distributors to get the word out.
"To some extent, that occurred, because some of them got their applications in before the deadline," Price said. "So there was some knowledge out there."
But Koperna said he didn't learn of the new rules until May 23, the day before they went into effect. And he and his fellow miners aren't alone.
Still waiting
Jerry Sayre, of St. Lawrence Explosives in Watertown, N.Y., said Friday he knew of two construction companies that were still waiting for permits.
"Some of these guys have been doing this all their lives," Sayre said. "You'd think the government could find some way to grandfather these people in."
Other complications have also arisen with the act:
UFuel for certain model rocket engines has been classified as an explosive under the new rules, leading some enthusiasts to fear their hobby will effectively be shut down. Sen. Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., was working on legislation that would free rocketeers from the rules.
UMaterials used to make fireworks are also covered by the law, and railroads have refused to carry such cargo until the Department of Transportation issues regulations for transporting explosives by train. That has forced manufacturers to arrange for more expensive transport by trucks.