U.S. Department of the Interior
Office of the Secretary

John Wright 202/208-6416


For Release: October 25, 1995

After 85 years of invaluable service, the U.S. Bureau of Mines will close this January. The Bureau was established in 1910 in response to tragic health and safety conditions in the nation's mines. Each year, thousands of workers were killed or injured in the mines, and thousands more condemned to illnesses as a result of prolonged exposure to dust, noise, and other hazards. In pioneering and award winning research and development, the Bureau has helped to detect and prevent fires, reduce silica and coal dust exposure, prevent mine cave-ins, reengineer dangerous practices and equipment, and train workers and companies to create a safer working environment.

Over the years, the Bureau contributed to the economic, military, and industrial strength of our country through improved mining methods and equipment, less expensive refining, and innovative metallurgical technologies. Other work in explosives, robotics, armor, and rescue equipment has benefited national defense and non-mining industries and applications. Because of Bureau research, energy and mineral resources have become steadily less expensive to obtain and use at the same time that the health and safety of the nation's miners has improved. As environmental concerns increased, the USBM applied its expertise to mine-related problems and developed improved mine reclamation and remediation technologies, constructed wetlands to mitigate acid mine drainage, and found ways to remove selenium, arsenic, and lead from polluted waters. The Bureau has assisted the land management agencies in dealing with abandoned mines and mineral processing sites, helped the Department of Defense remove lead from soils around firing ranges, and helped the Department of Energy find new ways to deal with massive waste storage problems.

Data and information developed by the Bureau are used world-wide, and its analyses have played key roles in decisions affecting U.S. and global security, our competitiveness in world markets, and our dual commitment to economic growth and environmental protection. Bureau geologists have identified and characterized many domestic sources of raw materials, and Bureau researchers have provided science, engineering, and analysis necessary for the sound management of public lands. Beginning before World War II and throughout the cold war, the Bureau has been a key contributor to defense preparedness through its expertise in the supply, production, and use of critical and strategic minerals.

As part of the appropriations process, the Congress voted to terminate all of the Bureau's programs within 90 days and to transfer some of the health and safety activities to the Department of Energy, and some of the information and analysis activities to the U.S. Geological Survey and the Bureau of Land Management. Almost $100 million of the Bureau's 1995 programs and activities will be terminated, and 1200 of its employees will be separated.

The closure and transition plan is contained in the Continuing Resolution signed by the President, and we expect it to be in the final appropriations bill for the Department. Budget pressures force us to begin preparations for the closure and reductions in force, which we expect to be essentially complete in January. Bureau Director Rhea Graham has already established a task force and work groups to initiate and complete the many activities necessary to close a statutory agency. Her goal, and that of all who are working with her, is to accomplish that task as painlessly and professionally as possible, and to assist our employees transitioning to retirement, continuing their work, or securing new positions.

The employees of the Bureau of Mines have every reason to be very proud of their 85 years of service to our country. On behalf of the Administration, I want to express our appreciation for their many accomplishments. The outstanding work and accomplishements of the employees of the Bureau of Mines will continue to benefit the nation long after the doors of the Bureau are closed.