1.This Directive, which is the twelfth individual Directive within the meaning of Article 16 (1) of Directive 89/391/EEC, lays down minimum requirements for the safety and health protection of workers in the surface and underground mineral- extracting industries defined in Article 2 (a).
2.The provisions of Directive 89/391/EEC shall apply in full to the sphere referred to in paragraph 1, without prejudice to more stringent and/or specific provisions contained in this Directive.