Jan M. Mutmansky, Professor Emeritus of Mining Engineering, was recently nominated by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) of the U.S. Department of Labor to be one of the six members of the Technical Study Panel on Belt Air. The Panel was mandated by the 2006 MINER Act passed by Congress to address some of the safety issues in underground coal mines.

At the initial Panel meeting, Jan was elected to Chair the study. The Panel is charged with the task of studying the safety issues of utilizing ventilation coursing over conveyor belts at a working face. The Panel will be submitting their final report to Congress in December 2007.