As used in the Mining Safety Act:

A. "accident" means:

(1) in the case of a surface mine:

(a) a death of an individual at a mine;

(b) an injury that has a reasonable potential to cause death to an individual at a mine;

(c) an entrapment of an individual that has a reasonable potential to cause death;

(d) an unplanned ignition or explosion of a blasting agent or an explosive;

(e) an unstable condition at an impoundment, refuse pile or culm bank that requires emergency action in order to prevent failure or that causes individuals to evacuate an area or failure of an impoundment, refuse pile or culm bank; or

(f) an event at a mine that causes death or bodily injury to an individual not at the mine at the time the event occurs; or

(2) in the case of an underground mine or the surface areas of an underground mine:

(a) a death of an individual at a mine;

(b) an injury that has a reasonable potential to cause death to an individual at a mine;

(c) an entrapment of an individual that has a reasonable potential to cause death;

(d) an unplanned inundation of a mine by a liquid or gas;

(e) an unplanned ignition or explosion of gas or dust;

(f) an unplanned mine fire in an underground mine that is not extinguished within ten minutes of discovery or an unplanned mine fire within the surface area of an underground mine that is not extinguished within thirty minutes;

(g) an unplanned ignition or explosion of a blasting agent or an explosive;

(h) an unplanned roof fall at or above the anchorage zone in active workings where roof bolts are in use or an unplanned roof or rib fall in active workings that impairs ventilation or impedes passage;

(i) a coal or rock outburst that causes withdrawal of miners or that disrupts regular mining activity for more than one hour;

(j) an unstable condition at an impoundment, refuse pile or culm bank that requires emergency action in order to prevent failure or that causes individuals to evacuate an area or failure of an impoundment, refuse pile or culm bank;

(k) damage to hoisting equipment in a shaft or slope that endangers an individual; or

(l) an event at a mine that causes death or bodily injury to an individual not at the mine at the time the event occurs;

B. "employee" means any person suffered or permitted to work in a mining occupation or pursuit by an employer;

C. "employer" includes any person acting directly or indirectly in the interest of an employer in relation to an employee to a place of employment;

D. "inspector" means the state mine inspector;

E. "mine" means:

(1) an area of land from which minerals are extracted in nonliquid form or, if in liquid form, are extracted with workers underground;

(2) private ways and roads appurtenant to an area described in Paragraph (1) of this subsection; and

(3) lands, excavations, underground passageways, shafts, slopes, tunnels and workings, structures, facilities, equipment, machines, tools or other property, including impoundments, retention dams and tailings ponds, on the surface or underground, used in, to be used in or resulting from, the work of extracting such minerals from their natural deposits in nonliquid form, or if in liquid form, with workers underground, or used in, or to be used in, the milling of such minerals, or the work of preparing coal or other minerals, and includes custom coal preparation facilities;

F. "mining occupations or pursuits" includes mining, smelting and the operation of a mill, ore house or treatment plant in which ore or rock is processed;

G. "operator" means:

(1) any owner, lessee or other person that operates, controls or supervises a coal mine; or

(2) the person, partnership, association or corporation, or subsidiary of a corporation, operating a metal or nonmetal mine and owning the right to do so, including any agent thereof charged with responsibility for the operation of such mine;

H. "person" means an individual, partnership, association, corporation, business trust, receiver, trustee, legal representative or successor to any of the foregoing; and

I. "place of employment" means any place in or about which the employee is suffered or permitted to work.

History: 1953 Comp., § 63-31-2, enacted by Laws 1961, ch. 136, § 2; 2007, ch. 301, § 8; 2007, ch. 302, § 8; 2015, ch. 107, § 2.

Cross references. — For duties of the state mine inspector, see 69-5-7 NMSA 1978.

The 2015 amendment, effective July 1, 2015, amended certain definitions in the Mining Safety Act; in the introductory sentence of Subsection A, after "'accident'", deleted "pursuant to 30 C.F.R. 50.2"; added the new introductory sentence in Paragraph (1) of Subsection A and redesignated former Paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) of Subsection A as Subparagraphs A(1)(a), A(1)(b) and A(1)(c), respectively; in Subparagraph A(1)(c), after "individual", deleted "for more than thirty minutes or"; deleted Paragraphs (4), (5) and (6) of Subsection A; redesignated former Paragraph (7) of Subsection A as Subparagraph A(1)(d); deleted Paragraphs (8) and (9) of Subsection A and redesignated former Paragraph (10) of Subsection A as Subparagraph A(1)(e); deleted Paragraph (11) of Subsection A and redesignated former Paragraph (12) of Subsection A as Subparagraph A(1)(f); in Subparagraph A(1)(f), after "occurs;", added "or"; added new Paragraph 2 of Subsection A; deleted Subsection B and redesignated former Subsection C as Subsection B; added new Subsections C and D and redesignated former Subsection D as Subsection E; in the introductory sentence of Subsection E, after "'mine'", deleted "pursuant to 30 C.F.R. 50.2"; added new Subsection F and redesignated former Subsections E, F and G as Subsections G, H and I, respectively; in the introductory sentence of Subsection G, after "'operator'", deleted "pursuant to 30 C.F.R. 50.2"; and deleted former Subsections H and I.

The 2007 amendment, effective June 20, 2007, added Subsections A, D and E.

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — What is "mine" under Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C.S. § 801 et seq.), 63 A.L.R. Fed. 415.