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The Callie Underground Gold Mine (Callie) is owned by Newmont Asia Pacific and located 531 km north-west of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory. Historically, stopes have been mined utilising a primary and secondary stoping sequence with cemented aggregate fill and rock fill respectively. Current and near-future mining will employ long hole open stoping with rib pillars and rock fill with a paste fill system approved to allow a higher extraction ratio from mid-2011. The Callie rock mass is of good quality with little or no mining difficulties during development and stoping to a depth of 1140 m below surface. Development is currently occurring at depth of 1360 m below surface. Stress damage previously observed only in secondary stope accesses is now observed in development unaffected by stoping stresses. A change in rock mass properties is being experienced with depth, with more pronounced and frequent joint planes. Also, other structures are intersected more commonly, such as lithological boundaries and fault zones. The 'Callie rock factory' mentality that has persisted for years is challenged. This paper covers an appraisal of the stress and ground condition changes at Callie. The appraisal outlines the mine design criterion that was developed and examines the transition from a low stress environment to one where stress damage is observed. Discussion includes a judgement on the rock mass damage observed in development, the dominant geotechnical factors influencing the change in ground conditions, and if a correlation can be made between the observed rock mass damage with stress through the use of numerical modelling.

Nov 25, 2010

By K A. Bunker, A D. Campbell, E Ah Mu, A R. Penney

The Ernest Henry mine is a transverse sublevel cave (SLC), which is relatively unique due to the 45 degree inclination of the orebody. To economically recover ore, each sublevel is horizontally offset from the previous level by around 25 m, depending on the orebody geometry. Mine development, slotting and initial production within this zone occurs in a high stress abutment that increases in magnitude at depth. These areas are seismically active and close to the hanging wall where cave propagation is yet to initiate. High stress conditions and the close proximity to the cave seismogenic zone results in challenging geotechnical conditions in the step out zone of each level and requires management of hazards including stress driven rockfalls, rock bursts and pillar failure.This paper outlines how these hazards were forecast using numerical modelling and geotechnical monitoring. Risk management techniques included dynamic ground support design, development of a new mine layout and extraction sequence as well as delayed re-entry into seismically active areas. Ongoing monitoring, instrumentation measurements and field observations were used to track the effectiveness of the controls.Future production levels are forecast to experience increasing stress and seismicity, which will increase demand on excavations and installed ground support. Ensuring the techniques and controls for monitoring, measuring and mitigating stress and seismic hazards are enforced is essential for continued safe production.CITATION:Campbell, A D, Bunker, K A, Ah Mu, E and Penney, A R, 2016. Managing stress and seismicity in an inclined sublevel cave, in Proceedings Seventh International Conference and Exhibition on Mass Mining (MassMin 2016), pp 319–328 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

May 9, 2016

By Rusdian F. Kayadoe, Michael B. Hutahaean, Sandi A. Firmanulhaq

Deep Mill Level Zone (DMLZ) mine is located in Papua, Indonesia operated by PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) with approximately 1,500m below surface. The ore body extend 1230m width from northwest to southeast by 300–400m length east-west. The mine currently produces at full production of 80,000 tons per day until 2041. Part of the extension of current active production block and mitigation sits 225 m above the production block 1 (PB1) and 2 (PB2A and PB2B) which located in 2590L, named production block#4 (PB4W and PB4E). As the mining continues at PB1N, PB2A, and PB2B, the cave growth vertically and laterally to south perimeter of the footprint affecting the integrity of PB4W/E footprint. Currently, PB1N and PB2N are in active production whilst PB4E development continues from South against PB1N cave, as can be seen in Figure 1. A slight overlapping between PB1E and PB4E intentionally to promote cave connections between the two caves. Despite low stress model in the PB4E near existing caves, the PB4E cave propagation expected by the large strain and will be propagating in tension failure to the PB1E cave. Hence, designing the drill drives edge and first drawbell location as close as possible to the PB1E cave is necessary to guarantee cave connection. Since PB4 footprint development commenced in December 2021, there have been a substantial cave propagation observed from existing downhole monitoring. As the PB4 footprint designed perpendicular to existing DMLZ PB1 cave, adjustment of the development edge design is necessary to reflect the progression the loosening zone propagation to the South. Final life of mine design for extraction, undercut and ventilation level were decided in October 2023 considering latest update cave (fractured/ yielded) boundary. Numerical model of potential rock mass damage also aids the decision to locate the drift edge design. Predicting the cave progression impact is critical to both production at the existing active blocks and development of the new area. The use of cave shape data from year 2021–2023 gives an insight of the cave shape estimation at the end of 2024 when the undercut drift will be developed. This paper presents actual cave growth of active production blocks and its relative vertical progression impact as the result of drawing in order to plan for acceptable rate and provide mitigation once the minimum acceptable rock mass condition and minimum pillar threshold achieved.

Feb 1, 2025

By Elizabeth Gardiner

Tailings and water management facilities are integral components of mine and mill operations. They must be managed for the long term to ensure that safe and environmentally responsible stewardship is achieved. The Mining Association of Canada (MAC) has developed and published two manuals to provide guidance to mining companies on sound practices for the safe and environmentally responsible management of tailings facilities: ???A Guide to the Management of Tailings Facilities; and ???Developing an Operation, Maintenance and Surveillance Manual for Tailings and Water Management Facilities. The Guides were designed to help companies develop and implement tailings management systems that include environmental and safety criteria, to improve the consistency of application of sound engineering and management principles to tailings and water management facilities through their full life cycle, and to demonstrate this to regulators and the public.

May 1, 2003

By R. D. Williams

"In a very real sense, Butte, MT is where the copper came from that won two world wars. The price for that unrestricted mining and smelting of copper came due in 1983 when Butte was declared a Superfund site.One of the most complex remnants of this mining history is the Parrot Tailings site. The Parrot smelter operated from 1881 to 1910, moving Upper Silver Bow Creek to the south and depositing approximately 283,000 m3 (370,000 cu yd) of waste material adjacent to Upper Silver Bow Creek. Additional mixed waste from other processing sites deposited below the Parrot tailings at the Northside Tailings, Diggings East and Blacktail Creek Berm total approximately 171,000 m3 (224,000 cu yd) of contaminated material. As part of the Superfund remedy, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed leaving all these wastes in place. This proposal prompted a detailed criticism by several geoscientists familiar with the site. The EPA’s 2006 Record of Decision (ROD) did in fact leave these wastes in place, which set the stage for a series of studies that continue to refine how best to protect extensive completed Superfund Remediation downstream of Upper Silver Bow Creek. History of the Parrott Mine and tailingsPlacer gold was discovered in Silver Bow Creek, the headwaters of the Clark Fork River only a few miles from the Continental Divide in 1864. This discovery led to a stampede of placer and lode claims. One of the first lode claims located was the Parrot lode, located in the fall of 1864. Progress for developing a mine at the Parrott was slow, and it was not until 1876 that one of the original locators encountered a rich vein of chalcocite. Butte had its first copper mine.The Parrott Mine was patented in 1879 and by 1881 the Parrot, having lost a “t”, concentrator and smelter were built. The smelter and concentrator were an immediate success with a considerable market for processing the district’s rich copper ore. In 1885, the employees of the Parrot smelter bought the Butte Reduction Works, another smelter. In 1885, dams were built on Silver Bow Creek to contain various tailings and related processing byproducts (Fig. 1).By 1890, the various smelters in Butte rendered Butte’s air quality as suffocating (Fig. 2). An 1889 funeral procession was rumored to have gotten lost in the thick smelter smoke and somehow ended up at the Centennial Brewery. A city ordinance was passed late in 1890 in an attempt to control smoke. The Parrot smelter employed approximately 500 men by 1890. Through the 1890s, the tailings produced grew from approximately 91 t/d (100 stpd) to more than 181 t/d (200 stpd). Copper values in the tailings were initially as high as 4 percent, but as the processing improved that was reduced to 1.5 percent."

Apr 1, 2019

By G. Lucas

"Material substitution occurs continuously in response to competitive and economic pressures. Technical development can accelerate or slow substitution by improving the performance of the invading or defending material. The choices are seldom simple and have to be made in the context of continuous commercial change.The development and commercialization of a new aluminum material is examined. The material has been introduced into· several different markets, so it is possible to compare and contrast the degree of success obtained in each.IntroductionAluminum-based materials have been in use for over one hundred years and , therefore, the development of a new family of alloys is rare. In the early 1970s, Dr. L.R. Morris and his coworkers at Alcan' s Kingston Research Centre started work on what was, at the time, something of a scientific curiosity-a family of alloys strengthened by an unusual mechanism.This paper deals with the development and commercialization of what became known as the Alcan 255 alloys"". These alloys have found uses in several markets, usually as improved substitutes for existing materials. Forecasting the usefulness of a substitute material in an existing marketplace is difficult, in part, because even material users are seldom able to specify precisely their requirements. This uncertainty can cause the failure of some substitutions but can also lead to opportunities which were not initially obvious.Technical BackgroundPure aluminum is a soft, weak material. It can be strengthened by the addition of various alloying elements and by work hardening. Alloying elements usually act by forming solid solutions which are stronger than the pure metal or by precipitating during heat treating or aging and so preventing the easy movement of dislocations during deformation. Elements which can perform either role had been investigated for decades and were thought to offer little chance of technical breakthrough in 1970. An outgrowth of the then new and exciting research on directional solidification seemed, however, to offer such promise.Some aluminum-iran-manganese alloys will solidify under certain conditions as 'coupled growth' eutectics (Figs. I and 2). The microstructure shows one phase growing as long rods through the other. This is an uncommon structure and it was investigated to see if it had equally unusual properties. On deformation by rolling the rods were broken up into small equiaxed , evenly-spaced particles (Fig. 3). Materials with this structure were found to be stronger than other alloys with similar amounts of alloying addition, and to resist thermal softening remarkably well. This combination of properties was thought initially to be due directly to the particles by a dispersion strengthening mechanism, but later this was found not to be strictly true."

Jan 1, 1987

By Chris Twigge-Molecey, John Peacey

To meet the business objectives of a metallurgical project, there is often a need for new and untried technology or equipment, whose very novelty can present serious risks to meeting those objectives. The key risk management approach is a rigorous stepwise progression from theoretical evaluations and laboratory tests to pilot plant trials. These must be followed by demonstration-scale trials before final construction of a commercial scale plant, paying particular attention to the magnitude of the scale-up between phases. Success depends on following a well-defined program, not eliminating any steps, and ensuring adequate resources are available to the development team. Chapter 6 discusses the nature of technology risks to metallurgical plant projects, and the rigorous management practices needed to identify, analyze, evaluate, and avoid or mitigate them.

Jan 1, 2015

By F. Turatti

Rio Tinto is one of the world's largest mining companies, involved in every stage of metal and mineral production, producing aluminium, copper, diamonds, coal, iron ore, uranium, gold and industrial minerals. Operations are in more than 50 countries in multiple continents and vary in location between large urban centres, regional industrial complexes and remote regions. A risk-based strategy was developed by Rio Tinto to manage its air quality impacts on a global scale. The strategy consists of three objectives ? improving air quality performance, developing industry leading practices and engaging and influencing in air issues. This paper discusses three major successes achieved this approach. Firstly, how air shed resources are managed in constrained air sheds. Secondly, how financial modelling is used to value air quality constraints, and thirdly, how a rigorous and comprehensive e-learning course is used to improve the overall level of air management knowledge of Rio Tinto?s environment managers.

Feb 27, 2013

The Newcrest Mining Limited Telfer Gold Mine consists of an underground sublevel cave (SLC) operation located 734 m directly below active open pit operations. Open pit and underground current production rates are 50 million and 5.7 million tonnes per anum (Mt/a) respectively. The SLC was initiated in late 2006 with breakthrough planned to occur on the 5484 bench of the west wall in late 2009. Risk to the south ramp was identified during this time, resulting in the construction of the north ramp. The SLC was continually tracked from initiation with a suite of monitoring systems and managed with a Major Hazard Management Plan (MHMP) and associated Trigger Action and Response Plans (TARP). At breakthrough the eastern limb of the cave was located within a 70 m horizontal distance from the south ramp. The south ramp was closed in October 2009 due to significant slope deformation, extensive cracking in the berms and batters between the ramp and breakthrough bench and a major failure 250 m to the north of the cave breakthrough. Wall response was first identified from slope deformation measurements taken by the wall monitoring radar in May 2009, at which point the SLC was 160 m from breakthrough. The impact of the SLC on the slope is a unique case with the monitoring systems in place able to provide data on the slope reaction to the SLC progression. This paper will discuss the management of the south ramp such as the early interpretation of risk associated with cave breakthrough, monitoring systems implemented to track the cave progression and wall deformation, data integration and interpretation and risk management. Following the closure of the south ramp further instrumentation programs and risk assessments were conducted to determine the risk of re-opening this haulage route. The outcomes of this program will also be presented.

Nov 25, 2010

By J Hall, A Gallardo, M Strizek

Mineralogy and coproponents Sino Iron, International Minerals and Austeel are in the process of developing four world class magnetite iron ore mines with multiple open pits along a 25 km strike length of Brockman Iron Formation to the south of Cape Preston on the West Pilbara coast. The close proximity of the proposed pits raises some challenging project approvals and environmental management issues relating to the impacts of dewatering at individual projects and the cumulative impacts of progressive development on local and regional groundwater resources, which includes a large fresh water aquifer system in the Fortescue River alluvium.This paper presents an outline of the hydro-environmental impact assessment process adopted and the key result that the cumulative impacts of dewatering at all four projects on the local brackish groundwater system in the basement rocks is only marginally more than the impact of any one project on its own, and that the impact on the Fortescue River alluvium aquifer is negligible. The paper also presents an outline of the proposed integrated water management approach that will involve coordinated monitoring, ongoing impact assessment and management, and reporting programs for all projects.

Jan 1, 2009

By B. W. Cavender

Innovative mining and metallurgical operating techniques and processes can be identified and developed by analyzing changes as they occurs within the mine, plant, technology or industry. Sources of change to be monitored for innovative opportunities include unexpected successes or failures, incongruities between perceived and actual events, process needs, changes in perceptions and the development of new knowledge. Innovation can be organized, practiced and managed. The perception of change as an opportunity rather than a threat is mandatory, as is the systematic measurement of innovative performance. Innovation is enhanced by specifically designed policies regarding organizational structure and staffing, daily management practices and compensation and incentives.

Jan 1, 1996

By B. W. Cavender

Innovative mining and metallurgical operating techniques or processes can be identified and developed by systematically analyzing change as it occurs within the mine, plant, technology, or industry. Sources of change to be monitored for innovative opportunities include unexpected successes or failures, incongruities between perceived and actual events, process needs, changes in perceptions, and the development of new knowledge. Innovation can be effectively organized, practiced, and managed. The perception of change as an opportunity rather than a threat is mandatory, as is the systematic measurement of innovative performance. Innovation is enhanced by specifically-designed policies regarding organizational structure and staffing, daily management practices, and compensation and incentives.

Jan 1, 1994

By Véronique Falmagne, Chantale Doucet, Thomas Côté

Production began in the Deep 1 zone of Goldex mine in 2017 at a depth of 1,200 m. Stope dimensions are 50 m high by 22 m wide (along strike) and the panel thickness varies between 22 to 35 m. The Deep 1 orebody is 350 m high by 400 m along strike and 200 m from hanging wall to footwall. The mining method is longhole with paste backfill with a three dimensional primary/secondary sequence advancing upwards in a typical chevron approach and retreating from hanging wall to footwall in a V-shape from a central panel. Mining at a depth of 1,200 m in massive granodiorite brings challenges related to seismicity.

Apr 26, 2022

By L Sandery, S Light

Within 22 months of commencing decline development, the Prominent Hill Ankata Underground Project achieved its full production rate of 1.2 Mt/a.In 2010 construction of the Ankata Underground Project was approved. Decline development commenced in November 2010 and the turnout for the first sublevel was reached by August 2011. The first stoping ore was produced in the first quarter of 2012 and production was successfully ramped up to full production during the third quarter of 2012.Diamond drilling commenced in October 2011 and was conducted concurrently with the underground development. This presented challenges as mining and production targets had to be balanced with underground exploration activities. To achieve production on schedule, without adversely affecting the diamond drilling program and future development, meticulous and adaptive planning techniques were required. This included involvement from engineers, geologists, underground operators and underground diamond drillers.The granularity of these planning techniques allowed the management and prioritisation of development and diamond drilling down to an almost hourly basis. A constant flow of information from drill assay results was fed back into the planning systems. This resulted in a constantly evolving mine plan as the orebody was further refined. High priority areas were identified and targeted to allow continued development and a successful rapid ramp up to full production.CITATION:Sandery, L and Light, S, 2014. Managing the diamond drilling interactions in commissioning the Ankata underground mine, in Proceedings 12th AusIMM Underground Operators’ Conference 2014 , pp 75–80 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Mar 24, 2014

By L. W. Berry

Drill and blast planning is critical to successful mine production, both in timing and in results. However, typical planning, reporting, and information exchange usually involves large quantities of data collated in a discordant set of spreadsheets, databases, and reports. Collecting, analyzing, modeling, and distributing all data necessary for efficient drill and blast operations is time consuming and cumbersome. MineSight Axis Drill and Blast provides an extensible core of functions, seamlessly integrated with other MineSight software tools, to make sense of this information. The benefits of improving the management of drilling and blasting processes are immense and result in improved fragmentation at a lower cost, improved shovel and truck productivity, and enhanced ore processing.

Jan 1, 2011

By S. Z. Pethö

Pillar extraction at shallow depths with small pillars that were not originally intended for secondary extraction can provide a huge benefit to the coal mining industry in those areas where a significant percentage of the remaining coal reserves are locked up in small pillars at shallow depths and where opencast mining methods are simply not as cost-effective and practical to implement. A system considering all of the pertinent geotechnical and mining aspects for the safe and efficient pillar extraction of small pillars at shallow depths at Xstrata Coal South Africa (XCSA) has been further developed and implemented as part of an ongoing improvement process addressing all of the relevant legal and associated risk aspects. This work follows on from the previous pillar extraction work carried out at the ATC, Boschmans, and Spitzkop Collieries. The process involved a number of in-house workshops and sessions arranged with all key personnel from Tavistock Colliery, and also included Professor Nielen van der Merwe of the University of the Witwatersrand, a world renowned authority on pillar extraction, towards reviewing and developing the Modified NEVID pillar extraction system employed previously at Boschmans Colliery. The system is currently being employed at Tavistock Colliery with success and no major accidents, with around 655 000 t of coal having been successfully extracted from the pillar extraction panels.

Jan 1, 2012

By Gift Makusha, Dave Minney

Anglo Coal South Africa mines coal for both the domestic and export market using open cast and strip mining methods. To establish a mine, a process is set in place to gather ever increasing amounts of geological and metallurgical data to confirm a proven reserve. Increasingly, geotechnical data are also included in this process to confirm that reserve is easily and safely mineable. The mine design process is an iterative one using a combination of numerical modelling and empirical data to arrive at a mining layout that is both, practical, productive and safe. In South Africa it is a legal requirement to compile a code of practice to combat rock fall and slope instability accidents and these have to be revised annually, reinforcing the iterative process of continual improvement. To ensure best practise occurs, all Anglo Coal operations are subjected to annual 2nd party audits and ad hoc 3rd party audit by independent consultants. This paper attempts to explain the process described above in a concise, but understandable manner. 1.0 GEOLOGICAL SETTING The Ecca sediments date from the Permian period and the coal deposits were formed in glaciated valleys on a basement of Dolomite, Ryolite or Granophyre rock types. The sediments overlying the coal deposits are typically flat lying and multiple bedded. The sediments consist of mudstones, shales and sandstones and are generally capable of forming stable highwalls given the time that they must stand up for. Anglo Coal extracts coal from the Witbank, Highveld and Vereeniging coalfields. The Witbank coalfields contain five seams numbered from the base upwards, 1 to 5 Seam; Highveld coalfield the 2 and 4 Seam and the Vereening area the seams are described as Top, Middle and Bottom seams. Coal deposited over the basement Dolomite formation display very erratic dips, as contemporaneous subsidence occurred in some instances over sinkholes that were forming, resulting in local thickening of the coal deposit and resulting in strata that dips toward the centre of the sinkhole.

Jan 1, 2006

By M K. Kapo, S C. Nzama

The success of a mining operation depends on the quality of data used in decision-making processes and the people involved in making operational decisions. At Olympic Dam, mine geologists form an integral part of the teams that make decisions at various key points in the mine operational value chain. Mine geologists are directly and indirectly involved in all stages of the mining process, namely, orebody definition and categorisation, mine design and planning, metallurgical processing, and reconciliation.Due to the sheer size and complexity of the Olympic Dam deposit, each mining stage has been divided into smaller units within which decisions are made in line with the overall mine operational plan. In each of these units, the decisions and inputs made by mine geologists has ensured that consideration of geological factors is made in the mining process. Over time, the mine geology team has demonstrated a systematic approach in the development and improvement of their processes in line with the mine’s operational needs, such as understanding the in-stope ore variability and maintaining a consistent ore feed to the plant. An understanding and interpretation of the mineralisation distribution, based on acquired data, has proven to be important in the definition of resource modelling parameters. These parameters in turn affect the quality of grade estimates and their downstream use in planning, production and subsequent reconciliation processes. The continual study of the geology of the deposit, and unravelling its complexity through research has been crucial to the metals extraction process. The involvement of mine geologists through each of the mine value processes places Olympic Dam in a favourable position to benefit from future opportunities that will take advantage of the increasing operational demands and production pressures, and the ever changing economic conditions.This paper reviews the role mine geologists play in the realisation of the Olympic Dam deposit, from ore to product, through their interaction and collaboration with other departments and stakeholders. This paper also highlights mining practices employed at the Olympic Dam mine.CITATION:Nzama, S C and Kapo, M K, 2014. Managing the giant – a mine geologist’s perspective to the mining of the Olympic Dam deposit, in Proceedings Ninth International Mining Geology Conference 2014 , pp 451–460 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Aug 18, 2014

By P. Sharma, J. C. W. Fowler

This paper discusses the wind blast / air blast phenomenon, how it is managed in coal mines and how it might best be managed in other underground mines. L'article qui suit a pour objets de décrire le phénomène de tir a l'air comprimé et les méthodes de modération de celui-ci dans les mines de houille, et d'indiquer de quelle manière il pourrait être surmonté dans d'autres mines souterraines. Dieses Seminararbeit diskutiert die Windexplosion / Luftexplosion Phänomen, wie es in Kohlenberg-werken geleitet wird, und wie es am besten in anderen untertage Bergwerken geleitet werden könnte.

Jan 1, 2003

Ensuring the success of a major resource development project, whether in the Gippsland Basin or elsewhere, is typically both a complex and costly process. It is therefore imperative from the point of view of the proponents of such a project - and in particular the financiers - that everything possible be done to minimise administrative confusion and delay in the establishment phase of the project, and to put systems in place which enable the project to run smoothly and efficiently in the later stages of its development and operation. An essential element in this process is ensuring that the project management is able to come to terms with and deal effectively with the relevant planning and environmental laws.

Jan 1, 1992