Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Roca Honda Mine

Chapter 3. Affected Environment and Environmental Consequences
The following project information is important for determining the extent of impact on health
care resources based on the three mechanisms of impact listed above.
The proposed action would result in a population influx for the duration of construction,
operation, and decommissioning phases, which would increase demand on local health care
services in the project area. In the “Socioeconomics” section it is predicted that hundreds of
workers (direct and indirect employment) would be required over the life of the project. Based on
these estimates this may mean large numbers of workers and their families would move into the
project area during various stages of the project. It is expected that operations (lasting 11 years)
would bring in the most workers. Since health care capacity is influenced by a wide range of
factors at a local, regional, and national level, it is difficult to predict how health care services
will change over the life of the project. However, if capacity stays the same the project-related
population influx would put additional strain on existing health care services potentially resulting
in a further degradation of care for the local population. These potential impacts to health care
services could be reduced by:
• Providing onsite access to health care for workers;
• Collaborating with local health care services to determine feasibility of partnerships to
increase health care capacity in the local area;
Accidents at the worksite may also increase the usage rates of local health care services. Table 98
presents the injuries reported for underground uranium mining in the U.S. between 2006 and
2009. Overall there have been no fatal injuries and 21 nonfatal injuries reported in that timeframe.
Table 98. MSHA-recorded injuries for underground uranium mining in the United States,
2006–2009
Fatal
Injuries
Nonfatal
Injuries
Average
Number of
Workers
Employee
Hours
Number of
Operations
2009 0 10 130 147,426 12
2008 0 8 135 110,588 14
2007 0 3 89 66,569 14
2006
Source: USDL, 2009
0 0 44 18,420 9
Based on table 98, it is expected that annual injury rates resulting from the proposed action would
be low, although injury rates depend highly on the corporate culture of safety of the proponent
and how strongly safety regulations and procedures would be enforced. RHR has developed
health and safety manuals for its mining operations. The various plans include having safety
meetings before the beginning of each shift, ensuring safe driving procedures, and having first aid
and EMT trained staff available at all times during mining operations. RHR’s safety procedures
align with the health and safety requirements of MSHA and OSHA. If the company adheres to
these procedures, this would reduce the risk of accidents in the workplace. It was also noted that
onsite Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) trained professionals can and often do respond to
422 DEIS for Roca Honda Mine, Cibola National Forest