Is China sacrificing safety for energy?

Energy over safety?

Despite reports that China is rapidly becoming one of the largest users of renewable energy and its pledge to cut carbon emissions, it is still one of the biggest users of coal in the world. As such, China's mining scale is second to none, however the same can't be said for their safety record.

According to official figures, 2,631 coal miners died in 1,616 mine accidents in China in 2009. While this figure may be down 18 percent from the year before, it just goes to show the peril of mining for coal in a country where safety standards seem to be of little concern.

The issue has once again been highlighted in recent days, with news stations in China reporting that 153 mine workers have been trapped for three days after a flood in a mine.

The colliery, in the northern Shanxi province, is state-run and is often said to be overcrowded. The state media has also reported that managers have often ignored reports of water leaking into the tunnels.

Despite over 1,000 rescue works on site, reports are saying there has been no contact with possible survivors. When the mine flooded, 261 people had been working in there. While over 100 escape, the rest are believed to have become trapped.

"Violated regulations and policies"

The government has immediately responded to the accident with the State Administration of Work Safety saying the mine's operators had "violated regulations and policies during the work process" and failed to follow the rules for preventing water leaks.

"Water leaks were found numerous times on underground shafts, but still they failed to take action to eliminate the potential risks," it said on its website.

The state group also added that the large number of workers had exceeded safety levels, and that operators had hired more men to speed up production.

Unsurprisingly, mine workers, including some that got out of the mine in time, have slammed the mine operators and their lax safety standards.

"They have been working us too hard. The regulations say we should be working eight hours a day - but they have been working us 16 hours a day and won't let us come out," one miner told the Associated Press. "These people have black hearts."

While rescue efforts continues, Beijing has ordered that 'no effort be spared' to save the miners, however this tragedy will only go to highlight China's every-growing need for energy to sustain its rapidly growing economy is going t result in more and more deaths unless mine safety can be take seriously.

While safety standards have improved over recent years, China's mines remain the most deadly in the world. Earlier this month, 31 miners died when a coal mine flooded in the Inner Mongolia region of China. Rescue efforts stopped after two weeks when no signs of life were found.

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Timon Singh

Timon Singh is a graduate of Liverpool University where he received a degree in Social and Economic History. He has previously worked for BBC Magazines on BBC Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine, the publication for the popular genealogy show.

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