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The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) today announced the award of $250,000 in Brookwood-Sago grant funding to two organizations to support education and training initiatives that will help identify and prevent unsafe working conditions in and around the nation’s mines.
Administered by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), the Brookwood-Sago Mine Safety grant program helps recipients create training materials, conduct mine safety training, and design educational programs to protect the safety and health of miners.
In awarding the grants, MSHA focused on innovative plans for mine safety and pilot programs that may be useful for miners working in a broad range of positions. The grants also put an emphasis on programs and materials targeting workers in smaller mines that train mine operators and miners about MSHA standards and emergency response.
Established under the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response Act of 2006, the grant program honors the miners lost at the Jim Walter Resources #5 mine in Brookwood, Alabama, on Sept. 23, 2001, and at the Sago Mine in Buckhannon, West Virginia, on Jan. 2, 2006.
The University of Arizona at Tucson will receive an $80,000 Brookwood-Sago Grant.
Arizona is the most copper-rich state in the country. The university is home to the state's only mining engineering program, one of only 14 programs accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology in the U.S.
U of A offers Mining Engineering bachelor’s degrees with concentrations in geomechanics, mine operations, mineral processing, and sustainable resource development.
A key component of the program is the school’s modular, pilot-scale mineral processing facility at its San Xavier Underground Mining Laboratory near Sahuarita, where students, faculty, and industry partners including Komatsu conduct research and prepare students to enter the mining workforce.
In Oct. 2025, the Arizona State Legislature provided $850,000 to construct the first phase, followed in Feb. 2026 by a $3 million federal contribution.
On Sept. 9, U of A announced it received $20 million from the Department of Energy’s Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation to add underground space, a microgrid, and electronics to the facility.
“By developing state-of-the-art proving grounds and a training center, we can prepare the workforce at every level,” said Kray Luxbacher, Head of the School of Mining Engineering and Mineral Resources. “We will also be able to rapidly prove and transfer technology that improves production, efficiency, safety and environmental outcomes to the industry.”
Students also train with digital twins, simulation software, and virtual reality to prepare for digitally-enabled mining operations.
The investments come as the mining industry faces a significant labor shortage. The Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME) estimated that more than half of the workforce, nearly 221,000 workers, will retire by 2029.
Saelua Medical Corporation of Pago Pago, American Samoa will receive a $170,000 Brookwood-Sago Grant.
While the territory does not currently host any land-based mining operations, the U.S. government is actively preparing to begin commercial deep sea mining in the area.
On July 10, the Department of the Interior created the Marine Minerals Administration (MMA), combining the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE).
On Oct. 19, the MMA announced the Final Leasing Notice for two areas on the Outer Continental Shelf east of the territory. An action is scheduled for Nov. 19.
While securing a lease does not immediately authorize mining, it does allow companies to begin preliminary activities like mapping. MMA said it will manage a multi-stage post-auction regulatory process before a company can begin physical exploration, testing, or full-scale commercial harvesting.
“MMA recognizes the ocean floor surrounding American Samoa carries cultural, economic, and environmental significance, requiring that the pursuit of National Security and energy readiness is balanced with rigorous environmental stewardship,” said acting MMA Director Mike Olsen. “As MMA evaluates potential deep-sea resources, its priority remains guided by science, environmental review, and meaningful engagement with the people and leadership of American Samoa.”
Local residents and leaders have opposed commercial deep sea mining in the area, submitting nearly 9,000 comments during a federal Request for Information in 2025.
Several local leadership groups - Faleula o le Manu‘atele, Fa‘asao Amerika Samoa (FAS), and Conservation Council for Hawai‘i - have joined together through Earthjustice to file a lawsuit against the U.S. government for attempting to conduct deep sea mining in the area.
“Deep sea mining threatens the lands and waters we have stewarded, and the federal government does not have authority to sell these leases in American Samoa.” said Malouamaua “Malo” Tuiolosega, Faleula o le Manu‘atele Representative.
The lawsuit described permanent destruction of marine habitats, harm to wildlife, and introduction of toxic substances into the food web observed in similar operations.
It also argues the lease violates two Instruments of Cession signed in 1900 and 1904 - ratified by Congress in 1929 - requiring all revenue from ceded lands be used “solely for the benefit of the inhabitants” of American Samoa.
The group claims the MMA is not authorized to conduct mineral leasing, and that the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) as amended by Congress in 2022 only applies to offshore wind turbine farms.
“For thousands of years, the people of Manu‘a have served as stewards of the waters surrounding Muliava (Rose Atoll). Their voices and traditional authority must be respected and included in decisions affecting our ancestral home,” said Utumapu Andrew Pati Ah Young, FAS Co-Founder.
Donald Halsing is the Founding Editorial Director of Work Safety 24/7. He was formerly the Associate Editor of Robotics 24/7.
Don's experience spans the supply chain, logistics, and construction industries, having worked in both warehouse operations and land surveying. He is also a professional wedding photographer with his fiancée Ashley.
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