Minnesota - The Minnesota Iron Range worker study that has been in the planning stages for several months finally has official funding.

The final vote was almost unanimous: 121 to one. A total of $4.9 million will be provided for the study, which will be conducted by the University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health, in conjunction with partners such as Iron Range Resources, the state Department of Health and Department of Natural Resources, North Shore Mining Company, and United Steelworkers of America.

The funding will be drawn from a Department of Commerce special fund: an Assigned Risk Plan that acts as an insurance fund for companies that are unable to get workers’ compensation in the open market. The fund has a surplus of $41 million.

Previous opposition to the proposed funding plan for the study came from Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who objected to the original funding plan. The Iron Range worker study was initially proposed with funding sourced from the state workers’ compensation special fund. Pawlenty objected because using funds from that source might have a negative impact on insurance costs for business owners.

Pawlenty had threatened to veto the bill on that basis, but has no objections to the study after alternative funding had been proposed.

The study was originally prompted by a number of factors relating to miners working in the section of Minnesota known as the Iron Range.

In 2007, the Department of Health announced that a total of 35 Iron Range miners had died from mesothelioma. With other miners previously identified as having died from mesothelioma, Professor John Finnegan, Dean of the University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health, says that 58 Iron Range miners have died from mesothelioma. Finnegan says that this total is “clearly in excess” of that which should be expected in an average population.

The University of Minnesota has attempted to obtain funding for similar research in the past, but has never received enough funding to complete an extensive study.

Once the new study begins it will attempt to determine why taconite miners are developing mesothelioma at such a high rate, including determining the source of the substance that is causing the cancer. The study will also attempt to evaluate the level of risk for miners’ families, and the general public.

DFL Majority Leader Tony Sertich indicated that the study would begin quickly after funding had been approved. Once the study begins, the research group will provide annual updates and recommendations for improving worker safety. The study is expected to be completed in around five years.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 1st, 2008 at 4:40 pm and is filed under Asbestos Exposure, Minnesota. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS feed. Responses are currently closed, but you trackback from your own site.