GREEN RIVER — Many people have asked SweetwaterNOW about the mine situations around the county in the wake of Governor Gordon’s order to limit gatherings to 10 people.

Craig Rood, Director of Public Relations and Community Affairs at Ciner, outlined the procedures and protocols the mine has established during this evolving situation. Craig is also the liaison for the trona industry on the Sweetwater County Task Force for Covid-19. His statement appears below.

“While there are no confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Sweetwater County, we have made changes to our day-to-day operation to help ensure our employees have a safe work environment. These changes are based on recommendations from the Federal Government, the CDC, state and county health departments, the Governor’s office and our employees. 

We have also had several meetings with similar industries to brainstorm ideas to better protect our employees.  Some of the steps we have taken include:

• Contingency planning for all business functions at all levels of the organization.
• Additional staff to clean common areas. Additional clean-up scheduled 24/7 of common areas. New/re-training on disinfecting areas for all cleaning staff. 
• Guidelines for employees on social distancing.
• Additional bus transportation to/from site so employees can practice social distancing on bus. Increased sanitation by bus company; bus is sanitized after each trip.
• All truck drivers isolated from Ciner employees – phone in direction system, separate hygiene facilities
• Social distancing with plant deliveries/pick-ups. All delivery/pick-up drivers are asked questions about Covid-19 symptoms, contact with infected people and travel history. Turned away if they have symptoms or have traveled to CDC listed countries. 
• Only essential visitors allowed at plant with escort – All essential visitors are asked questions about Covid-19 symptoms, contact with infected people and travel history. Turned away if they have symptoms or have traveled to CDC listed countries. 
• No in person meetings unless social distancing can be met – try to use teleconference
• No groups together – less than 10
• Supervisors maintain PPE supply and refresh PPE training
• Staggered entry into mine with cleaning of man cage in between
• Employees that can telecommute are being encouraged to work from home
• Ban on business travel and provided information on CDC suggestions for personal travel
• Instructed all employees to stay home if they have symptoms. 
• I am liaison for Trona Industry on Sweetwater County Task Force for Covid-19
• Communication with competitors on best practices to combat Covid-19. Site managers and safety professionals teleconferencing to discuss issues. 
• Opened communication channels with public and private entities to have most recent, relevant information on the situation. Have been in constant communication with the following public entities:
  • Governor’s Office
  • Sweetwater County Health
  • Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC)
  • Memorial Hospital
  • Wyoming Mining Association
  • Our company physician
  • Auditor Racines – chair of Wyoming Task Force on Covid-19

“This is an evolving situation and we will continue to implement changes, as suggested by our government agencies to help maintain a safe work environment. We will continue to keep communication lines open to respond to any concerns our employees may have.”