Many people know firsthand or indirectly the dangers and risks that coal miners face when they go to work every day for their long 10- to 12-hour shifts. Even with all the work that has been done to promote and encourage safety, coal mines still have many inherent risks and hazards for workers.

Unfortunately, that sometimes means ignoring the canary.

That proverbial canary has always been the warning, the harbinger of things to come that are dangerous or negative. And while much has been done in safety that the canary doesn’t chirp quite as often, it still has a song to sing – and mainly it’s about the air that the miners breathe.

Coal dust in a mine is extremely difficult if not impossible to keep at levels that are low and somewhat safe, though much progress has been made in the way of ventilation in these mines to at least keep dust levels down and encourage workers to get some open-air breaks during their shifts.

That canary still sings, though, and now the U.S. government has stepped forward with a safety rule that is designed to translate the canary’s siren song once and for all.

One of the still-high risks with coal mine work is the nasty disease known as black lung. This impacts a large percentage of coal mine workers who are continuously exposed to high concentrations of coal dust. Much has been done to mitigate concentrations of coal dust, but it is virtually impossible to fully eliminate. The risk is always there, and now a new rule is in place to help workers address the issue sooner.

Some basic medical standards were put in place for coal miners in the late 1960s, and a current rule updates that initial rule regarding medical examinations and “surveillance” of coal workers. The new rule adds a breathing test called spirometry as part of regular health exams for coal workers. The test, administered regularly, can help measure a worker’s lung capacity and may be a tool to help show the onset of black lung disease, which coats the lungs with black coal dust and severely hampers worers’ breathing similar to emphysema.

But that is not all. The rule also makes those companies which operate the mines to have a plan for conducting regular spirometry and X-ray testing on all coal workers, whehther they are surface or underground.

These days, miners have a special monitor on their outfits that measure the coal-dust levels in their work area, and those who are in areas of high concentration have real-time monitoring devices that measure the levels every few seconds to ensure that the workers and supervisors are informed and know when to give breaks and get fresh air to the workers.

The Federal Register, where all regulations and rules are logged, features this new rule in its entirety so workers and supervisors can understand first-hand the obligations and responsibilities.