Hecla's Greens Creek Mine Receives Award

COEUR DALENE, ID - Hecla Mining Company reported that the Greens Creek mine near Juneau, Alaska, received the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Mine Safety and Health Technology Innovations Award. This award recognizes companies that have made extraordinary efforts to apply technology to improve the safety and health of mine workers.

The Hecla Greens Creek mine received the award for the implementation of a collision avoidance system for its surface mobile equipment. This system, created by SAFEMINE Technology USA, is a ground-based collision avoidance system used in the aviation industry and uses GPS and radio technology to monitor vehicle speed and the proximity of vehicles to one another.

Surface operations at the Greens Creek mine are primarily located on a single-lane road that winds through Admiralty Island in the Tonga’s National Forest. Implementation of the collision avoidance system significantly enhances safe operations by providing warnings of other vehicles as well as allowing for establishment of speed restrictions in certain areas.

"I continue to be impressed by the safety initiatives undertaken by employees of Hecla. Never satisfied with the status quo, they are always looking for ways to improve the safety and efficiency of our operations, " said Phillips S. Baker, Jr., President and CEO. He added, "This award demonstrates the priority safety Hecla has."