A Note On Ground Movements And Associated Ground Water Responses At An Underground Appalachian Mine ? Introduction

Ground movements associated with high extraction underground coal mining, such as pillar retreat and longwall, are sometimes large enough to disrupt the ground water regime as well as damage buildings and other surface structures. A U.S. Department of Energy/Bureau of Mines- sponsored subsidence study currently underway at Kitt Energy Corporation's Kitt No. 1 Mine near Philippi (Barbour County), West Virginia has provided an opportunity to monitor the ground water response above a mine panel during both developmental and pillar retreat mining. The initial findings concerning ground water effects presented in this paper indicate that total extraction mining produced significant water level declines in deep-lying strata but had little effect on water bevels at shallower depths.