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By D Reid, A Fourie

The in-pipe treatment of slurries with polymer addition shortly prior to deposition is a noteworthy emerging technology of increasing popularity. Although polymer treatment has been shown to substantially modify and improve depositional and dewatering behaviour in a significant number of cases, the impacts of polymer treatment on geotechnical performance of tailings are less well understood. For example, certain combinations of polymer and slurry type have been shown to result in lower final densities at a given vertical effective stress. Despite these lower densities, polymer-treated tailings often exhibit peak undrained shear strengths consistent with untreated material. However, the sensitivity and/or brittleness of the material may be negatively influenced by the looser state created. Although these changes have been studied, most testing available in the literature was undertaken on relatively ‘fresh’ samples of polymer-treated material. However, significant shear may occur following treatment and prior to the commencement of settling and self-weight consolidation as the material moves down the beach.To study the effects of shearing on the subsequent performance of polymer-treated tailings, a test program consisting of consolidation, triaxial and direct simple shear tests was undertaken on presheared polymer-treated material. Materials used were identical to those used in previously published studies on the impacts of polymer treatment in a ‘fresh’ condition. Shearing of the polymer-treated material generally appeared to lessen the impacts of the polymer treatment process. However, the behaviour of the material when sheared indicated that the polymer was still impacting the behaviour of the material in some respects. The results indicate the importance of the consideration of shearing on material behaviour when planning and designing a tailings deposit where polymer treatment is to be implemented.CITATION:Reid, D and Fourie, A, 2015. Effects of shear on the behaviour of polymer-treated slurries, in Proceedings Tailings and Mine Waste Management for the 21st Century , pp 215–224 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 27, 2015

By D Sibthorpe

The employment of a tunnel boring machine (TBM) is the default delivery method for the realisation of traffic, utility and primary resource underground space worldwide, with hundreds of kilometres completed safely each year. This is not yet the case for the mining sector in Australia, specifically underground coal mining. The safety advantages of TBM delivery when compared to New Austrian Tunnelling Method (NATM) delivery, or that of drill and blast, remains unrealised.With coal access drifts ranging between 1000?m and 3000?m in length, the construction of these facilities using TBMs could be done in a fraction of the time when compared to current practice. TBM world records currently stand at 435?m/week or 1600?m/month for the 7.0?m to 10.0?m range. Resource owners and developers should embrace the opportunity to deliver access to their orebodies in only a few months, excluding machine assembly and disassembly time.There are challenges in utilising TBMs for construction of Coal access drifts, such as; TBMs generally being bespoke design, maximising capital efficiency for drift development, and geotechnical variances between projects. This paper explores safer and more cost-effective options. This paper also provides detail of how the configuration within a completed drift could be optimised to ensure all site specific needs are met with regard to future use of the drift. The paper also includes descriptions of the engineering solutions that are available for physical and atmospheric challenges specific to coal drift applications and how the TBM manufactures are adapting to the regulatory requirements are also covered.Due to downward pressure on high cost bases and ever increasing safety requirements the popularity of TBMs in the Australian mining sector can be expected to increase and eventually become the default delivery method for coal drift construction, building them cheaper, faster and?safer.CITATION:Sibthorpe, D, 2014. Coal drift construction by tunnel boring machine, in Proceedings 15th Australasian Tunnelling Conference 2014 , pp 671–682 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 17, 2014

By L P. Gray

"From paving the way in gaining approval for the first metalliferous in-pit tailings storage facility (TSF) in Victoria, to developing a deposition methodology to optimise the storage capacity and provide a final rehabilitated surface which replicates the premining topography, in-pit tailings storage has proven not only to be a cost-effective means for tailings management at Fosterville Gold Mine, but also one which provides significant economic, social and environmental benefits. Coupled with ongoing raising of the existing above ground TSF and commissioning of a new above ground TSF, Fosterville Gold Mine have to date effectively used three open pits for in-pit tailings storage, with one of the pits currently progressing through the capping and vegetation establishment phases of closure.This paper presents the process adopted by Fosterville Gold Mine in their flotation tailings management, from design and operational phases through to rehabilitation implementation. Included within the paper are challenges which have arisen during the process, and a discussion on principals behind the designs and lessons learnt during operation of the facilities.Citation:Gray, L P, 2016. Full Cycle Tailings Management at Fosterville Gold Mine, in Proceedings 13th AusIMM Mill Operators’ Conference 2016, pp 369–378 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Oct 10, 2016

By E Nettleton, A Melkumyan

A probabilistic system for autonomous tracking of excavated ore in mining would be highly valuable. Currently, mine sites can have a vast array of sensors; examples include excavator load cells, bucket volume estimators and haul truck strut pressures which can be used to gather information about the excavated ore at different locations. These sensors can be utilised efficiently to increase the accuracy of mine estimates by introducing a real-time ore tracking system. This requires the introduction of a probabilistic ore tracking framework to consistently fuse information from any sensor input. Current modelling practices are manually intensive, deterministic (no recognition of the quality of data) and generally not a complete end-to-end system. This paper will provide a novel method for tracking extensive ore properties (mass, volume) and intensive ore properties such as chemical composition (eg Fe per cent, SiO2 per cent, Al2O3 per cent). This method is proved to ensure that correct correlations between states are conserved as material is transferred, combined and/or separated at different locations with any configuration of sensor inputs. This ensures that consistency of estimates is maintained and other benefits such as real-time probabilistic reconciliation can be implemented. A method for combining material of different mass and chemical compositions is also developed to enable accurate and efficient operation of the system. Representative experiments on a small-scale and a larger field trial which mimic the mining processes of excavation, haul and unload to ROM Stockpile will be used to verify the approach.

Sep 26, 2011

By H Ishikawa, S Palaniandy

The gravity-induced stirred mill such as the TowerMill is an energy-efficient grinding solution used in secondary, tertiary, and regrinding duties in the mineral processing concentrator. The interest in this technology is emerging, with more than 300 mills installed globally in various grinding duties and commodities for the last 30 years. Although the technology is matured, there are still opportunities for improvement and the development of new knowledge to improve its circuit energy efficiency and reduce water consumption. Recent studies show that a combination of stress intensity, ore hardness, slurry density, and mill feed configuration can be used to evaluate the performance of the grinding circuit. A recent pilot-scale TowerMill test work at various stress intensities shows that a lower operating work index and size-specific energy were achieved at higher agitator tip speed and using medium size grinding media. These outcomes were confirmed through several site trials. A smaller 17 mm grinding media has reduced the operating work index and size-specific energy by 18 per cent and 11 per cent, respectively, compared to the 20 mm in a magnetite concentrator. Moreover, the conversion from top feed to bottom feed configuration has reduced the operating work index and size-specific energy by 13 per cent and 37 per cent, respectively. The circulating load was reduced by 34–38 per cent, leading to a reduction in the dilution water consumption in the hydrocyclone feed sump by 20 per cent. A variable frequency drive offers flexibility to change the stress intensities on the TowerMill, where a 35 per cent reduction in specific energy was achieved when the ore became soft. This paper explores the potential design and operating strategies that can be implemented to enhance the energy efficiency, reduce water consumption and reduce CO2 emissions in the circuit and finally evaluate its impact on the total cost of ownership.

Aug 24, 2022

Pike River Coal Limited is in the process of developing the Pike River Coal Mine in the Paparoa Ranges of New ZealandÆs South Island. The mine will be developed to extract a coking coal deposit of the Brunner Seam, some 46 km north-east of Greymouth, using a combination of continuous miners and hydraulic extraction. The mining area is located within Department of Conservation (DOC) land and is adjacent to the escarpment of the Paparoa Range and the Paparoa National Park.   As such, the major restriction to planned extraction is protection of: +        the western escarpment, +        vertical and sub-vertical rock faces, +        permanent water courses, +        significant vegetation, and +        steep slopes.   The mine will use its elevation advantage to hydraulically flume coal from the working faces to the pit bottom area where it will be slurried to approximately 35 per cent density of solids and pumps down a slurry line to the coal prep plant some 10.5 km down the Pike River Valley. The coal will be sold on the export market as a high quality coking coal for international steel making.

Jan 1, 2006

By Bodnaras G. E, Sceresini P. A

The Filblast Cyanidation Process incorporates the advantages of intense high shear mixing, high dissolved oxygen concentration and high pressure to achieve extremely rapid gold dissolution rates. This is made possible by the unique design of the Filblast gas shear reactor. The reactor is a rugged and compact in-line device. The outer casing is protected by a polyurethane coating and the internal parts are of wear resistant polymer. The largest unit built to-date has overall dimensions of 1200 mm length by 300 mm diameter and has a capacity of 150 dry tonnes per hour at 40 - 45 per cent solids. Service life at this throughput is at least three months. The process may further be applied to high temperature leaching of refractory gold ores or other metals. Wear resistant metal or ceramic materials would be employed for this duty. Four mines are currently employing the Filblast Process for treating a variety of ore types ranging from highly reactive, almost impossible to treat, pyrrhotite/arsenopyrite to deeply weathered clay ore which forms a highly viscous pulp. The effect of shear thinning has resulted in improved adsorption kinetics resulting in higher carbon loading and reduced soluble gold loss. Total tonnage treated is approximately four million. Operating costs which include leasing and maintenance charges for the Filblast and pump power costs are about 16 cents per tonne. This is equivalent to about ten per cent of savings. Laboratory scale units having capacities up to 30 litres/min are available for test work but laboratory testing techniques so far developed do not accurately reflect the oxygen and cyanide savings which have been achieved in the plant.

Jan 1, 1994

By H Zhang, M Karimi, M Hassan, S Saydam, B Li

With the prevalence of Mine Internet of Things (MIoT), different types of sensors have been widely deployed in mine sites for environmental monitoring and operational management. Currently, sensors in mine sites are mainly powered by cables or batteries. However, the deployment and maintenance of a power supply network can be difficult and expensive, and batteries have a limited lifespan. The vibration energy harvesting (VEH) technology can be used to provide power for lowpower sensors in mine sites. This presentation briefly introduces three widely used VEH methods (ie piezoelectric, electromagnetic, and electrostatic). The performance of a commercial electromagnetic energy harvester (ReVibe model D) is evaluated based on the vibration of a lab vibrator (3 g, 50 Hz) and an idling SUV automobile (0.3 g, 25 Hz). Experimental results indicate that a ReVibe energy harvester can generate adequate electricity to power a sensor, and its power output depends on the load resistance as well as the vibration frequency and amplitude of vibration sources. To apply VEH to mining applications, this study also analyses the characteristics of vibration sources at the mine site based on the vibration data collected from various operating machines in a coal handling and preparation plant (CHPP). The vibration analysis results indicate that all the measured vibration sources in the CHPP can generate stable and abundant vibrations, characterised by substantial amplitudes (up to 5.55 g) and low dominant frequencies (ranging from 14 Hz to 25 Hz), which are sufficient for VEH.

Sep 1, 2024

By J S. Laskowski

Froth flotation process requires the use of frothers. These important flotation agents are commonly characterised as either æselectiveÆ or æpowerfulÆ and are chosen following general guidelines and verification by laboratory and/or pilot plant tests. Fundamental properties of the flotation frothers have been extensively studied over the last few years. These studies have led to the development of standardised procedures to characterise frothers in terms of their ability to reduce bubble size and to increase foam stability. In this research project, the performance of five frothers in flotation of coal is evaluated and related to the fundamental properties of these agents. Since the recovery of water in the concentrate is closely related to the non-selective transport of solid particles by entrainment, the tested frothers are also assessed in terms of their ability to promote the transport of water towards the froth collection zone, both in absence and in presence of solids.

Jan 1, 2005

By A McGann, P J. Coghill, D Miljak

"It is widely accepted that bulk ore sorting could provide a step change in processing of low-grade ores. For this to be achieved a rapid, accurate bulk sensor of grade is required as well as sufficient natural variation of grade in the ore stream. CSIRO trialled a magnetic resonance (MR) sensor capable of measuring chalcopyrite, and by inference total copper grade, on the 1300 t/h Ridgeway portal conveyor. The gauge produced an unprecedented set of data down to a 1 t scale for months at a time. This paper analyses the measured variation and compares it to a simple model derived from the bore core data and mixing within the block cave mine.The model of the small-scale (<1000 t) variation is developed using fractal methods which have successfully been used in the past for copper porphyry deposits showing a power law or near power law distribution of copper grade and vein sizes. These fractal distributions have two features highly favourable for segregating ore, a large proportion of low-grade pods and the large-scale spatial clustering of grade. We show the presence of fractal ordering in bore core data at short range in the Cadia Ridgeway porphyry deposit and measure its persistence in the crushed rock produced by the Ridgeway block cave mine over one month. The model is then extended to demonstrate the effect of varying head grade, mixing and pod (or diversion) weight on bulk sorting efficiency.CITATION:Coghill, P J, Miljak, D, McGann, A, 2016. Modelling Grade Variation in Crushed Ore at Cadia Ridgeway and Its Potential Consequences for Bulk Ore Sorting, in Proceedings The Third AusIMM International Geometallurgy Conference (GeoMet) 2016, pp 77–88 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Jun 15, 2016

The Grootegeluk coal beneficiation plant is situated near Ellisras in the Waterberg coal= field in the Transvaal, RSA. At this plant 15 million tons of coal bearing material per annum are beneficiated by means of two-stage heavy medium bath and cyclone plants. Because of the very low yield of 12 % coking coal product, run= ping costs are of the - utmost importance. For this reason extensive tests were carried out to establish the most effective crushing and bene= ficiation methods and suitable aquipment. At the second heavy medium separation stage, the near-gravity material (+ 0,1. g/cc) amounts to 45 % and daily plant performance ana=lysis is required to ensure acceptable plant efficiency. Beneficiation processes for the -0,5 mm coal originally considered were froth flotation, shaking tables, heavy medium cyclones and water- only cyclones. When the froth flotation route was decided upon, further test work was done to enable selection of the equipment most suitable for the particular requirements.

Jan 1, 1987

By S J. Schafrik, E S. Gilliland, E C. Jong, J Waynert, C W. Weiss

Two commercially available through-the-Earth (TTE) communications systems were evaluated at an active underground longwall mine in West Virginia. One system utilises magnetic field (H-field) antennae while the other system utilises electric field (E-field) antennae to achieve communication. A large portion of this mine is overlain by an inactive gas-oil field composed of densely spaced wells. This feature provided a unique opportunity to determine the impact of cased wells on both TTE technologies. The following communication modes were investigated: surface to underground, underground to surface, underground to underground and real-time two-way communications. Standard deployments of the TTE systems using the manufacturer’s recommended procedures were able to achieve clear communications between underground and surface locations under certain circumstances. As a result, the design and deployment that will optimise TTE transmissions are unique to each system and to the specific area of the mine. This field study was conducted as a part of a larger multisite evaluation of available TTE systems in an effort to determine their operational sensitivity. The performance of these two TTE systems suggested that one may be preferable over the other depending on the conditions present during deployment.CITATION:Jong, E C, Schafrik, S J, Gilliland, E S, Weiss, C W and Waynert, J, 2015. Pairing magnetic and e-field through-the-Earth communication systems based on mine site conditions, in Proceedings Third International Future Mining Conference, pp 245–252 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Nov 4, 2015

Problems caused by water discharge from surface mine ventilation shafts can be significant and are usually unforseen. The discharged water is often hyper-saline or acidic and can cause environmental degradation over a wide radius. It can also lead to recurring power pole fires and primary fan breakdowns. A range of solutions to the water discharge problem has been implemented in many Australian mines. In most cases the solutions have been ad hoc, with the overall cost and effectiveness varying tremendously. This paper reviews and contrasts the practicality and effectiveness of the various available remedial options.

Jan 1, 2002

By A Gustafson, G Shekhar, P Boeg-Jensen

The amount of material extracted from each blasted ring in sublevel caving mines is vital when deciding the overall mine production target. The orientation of the production drifts is normally perpendicular to the strike of the orebody, and rings are blasted from the hanging wall side to the footwall side in a retreating manner. For an inclined orebody, a given ring will contain different amounts of material based on its relative position along the production drift. This layout creates a distinctive problem with respect to the extraction ratio optimisation along the axis of the production drift. This paper describes the current drawpoint control strategy practiced at LKAB and presents the variation of drawpoint performance parameters along the production drifts. It uses automatically generated data from a bucket weighing system that measures tonnage drawn per bucket, and it classifies the blasted rings into four zones based on their relative position along the production drift. It considers the loading procedure for blasted rings at Kiirunavaara mine and analyses the variations in drawpoint performance along the production drift. The paper finds that although the current draw control strategy is sensitive to ring position along the drift, it could be modified to optimise the final extraction ratio.CITATION:Shekhar, G, Gustafson, A, Boeg-Jensen, P and Schunnesson, H, 2016. Draw control optimisation along the production drift in sublevel caving mines, in Proceedings Seventh International Conference and Exhibition on Mass Mining (MassMin 2016), pp 241–250 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

May 9, 2016

By N Anderson

The world-class Golden Mile gold deposit in the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia is part of the Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines (KCGM) operation, which is wholly owned by Northern Star Resources Limited. Current mining operations across the Golden Mile is dominated by the large Fimiston Open Pit, which is over 4 km long, 1 km wide and 600 m deep. It is part of a larger mineralised system that stretches over 8 km and includes the Mt Charlotte Underground Mine, which is also operated by KCGM, as well as numerous historical open pit and underground mines. This mineralised system has been continuously mined for over 125 years and is set to continue well into the future. The Golden Mile deposit is in the Norseman Wiluna Greenstone Belt which is made up of a series of mafic volcanic and sedimentary rocks that have been structurally deformed and intruded by granitic rocks. There are two main styles of mineralisation across the Golden Mile. Firstly, the Fimiston style, which consists of shear hosted Golden Mile lodes with abundant sulfides and tellurides and secondly, the Charlotte style that comprises younger stockwork veins. Fimiston style mineralisation is the primary style of mineralisation within the Fimiston Open Pit. Historically, in excess of 3500 m of underground development and over 755 stopes were mined prior to the consolidation of the area and the commencement of Fimiston Open Pit operation. Old underground workings, known as voids, are either empty or backfilled and extend to more than 1.2 km below surface. Although they are a routine part of mining operations at KCGM, voids pose a significant challenge for the geology team in terms of planning and executing exploration and grade control drilling, geological modelling, grade and tonnage estimation, drill and blast design and execution, marking up ore block designs, mining, and reconciliation. This paper will discuss the various challenges faced by the geology team due to the presence of voids, solutions used to overcome some of these challenges and the results of these activities.

Mar 22, 2022

Breakwater Resources Ltd is a Canadian base metals producer with Cu-Pb-Zn operations in Canada, Honduras, and Chile. Two of its operations contain economical gold levels which are recovered in both gravity and flotation concentrates. The gold payable terms in zinc concentrate are poor when compared to gold concentrates or copper concentrates and various flow sheets have been evaluated by Breakwater staff to maximise gold reporting in higher value products. The Myra Falls mine in British Columbia recovers coarse gold in the grinding circuit, part of which is upgraded and sold as a gravity-gold concentrate with the balance being directed to the copper concentrate. A sampling survey showed that there was potential gravity-recoverable gold in the copper regrind circuit. Installing a gravity concentrator in the copper regrind circuit increased the gold grade and recovery in the higher revenue copper concentrate and reduced the quantity reporting to the less well paid zinc concentrate. The El Toqui Mine in southern Chile has distinct high-and low-gold orebodies which are campaigned separately through the flotation plant. The high gold zone yields both a gravity concentrate and an unusual gold flotation concentrate. The gravity concentrate undergoes intensive cyanidation and electrowinning on-site to produce dore, while the fl otation concentrate is sold to gold producers. The zinc concentrate contains signifi cant gold values. The paper describes efforts over the past few years to improve gold returns at Breakwater's operations and highlights the different approaches dictated by the mineralogy of the gold occurrences at these two operations.

Aug 1, 2010

By J Shillabeer

Paste backfill has been adopted by many underground mines in North America and a growing number elsewhere. Paste offers a number of advantages. This paper suggests wider applications of paste technology to surface tailings disposal and water management. Advantages include improved overall stability, potentially easier permitting, smaller water inventory and earlier reclamation. It may be feasible to use the same plant to prepare backfill and to dispose of surplus tailings. Example cost models are given to illustrate potential applications.

Jan 1, 1998

Longhole open stoping was introduced in the zinc-rich 'B' lode at New Broken Hill Consolidated Limited (NBHC) during 1968. Since then one longitud- inal and a series of transverse longhole open stopes have been developed. The longholes are drilled using Gardner Denver airtrac drilling jumbos and the broken ore is loaded from drawpoints and transported to chutes using Wagner ST5 scoop- trams. The holes were drilled from sill stopes 160 ft apart. The width of an emptied transverse longhole stope was successfully widened by blasting rings of blastholes drilled parallel to the stope wall. Proposed stope and pillar designs for a series of transverse longhole open stopes were assessed using a method of finite element analysis, applied to a longitudinal section through the area. Blastholes have been surveyed for dip and bearing using an Eastman borehole survey camera. The data produced has provided the basis of a study of blast- hole deviation. Deviation of boreholes is considered to be the major cause of the formation of benches in longhole stopes.

Jan 1, 1971

By Ormsby W. R, Nicholson P. M

Woodcutters is a polymetallic vein-style deposit hosted by sediments of the Palacoproterozoic Whites Formation which forms part of the sedimentary sequence in the central Pine Creek Geosyncline. Past production and identified resources total over eight million tonnes at 5.5 per cent lead, 12.1 per cent zinc and 110 gA silver. The local geology is influenced by Archaean basement highs; the Rum Jungle and Waterhouse Complexes. Unconformably overlying basement are interbedded clastic and crystalline carbonate units (Batchelor Group) representing cyclic changes in the depositional environment. These exhibit onlapping features with the underlying rocks. Sediments of the overlying Frances Creek Group suggest a quiet period during subsidence and subsequent increase in water depth (the carbonaceous dolomitic shales and the interbedded dololutites of the Whites Formation) followed by proximal uplift resulting in the inundation of turbiditic flows (Acacia Gap Quartzite). All of the Palaeoproterozoic rocks show evidence of being affected by penecontemporaneous, basement circling faults with steep dips. The stress regime during the deposition of the Frances Creek Group was characterised by alternating episodes of thrusting and transpression. Periods of relaxation also occurred. The compression resulted in major NS strike-slip (transpressional) faulting, en-echelon NNE trending folds and NW-SE tensional cross faults. Thrusting produced N-S striking, steep dipping reverse faults and a possible decollement immediately above the Batchelor Group. Relaxation is evidenced by the intrusion of lamprophyre dykes and dolerite sills (Zamu Dolerite). Mineralisation at Woodcutters occurred in faults within the Whites Formation, probably synchronous with deformation and the deposition of the upper parts of the Frances Creek Group. Greenschist facies metamorphism occurred as the rocks were further buried. Several massive sulphide bodies occur at Woodcutters. A number of features influence the location and shape of these bodies. They are: ò the N-S transpressional faults and in particular associated dilation zones; ò intersection of the N-S transpressional faults with the axial plane of the NNE trending Woodcutters Anticline; ò intersection of the N-S transpressional faults with the NW-SE cross-faults; ò intersection of dololutite rich units with the NS transpressional faults where local replacement takes place; ò thickening of the lithological units in the vicinity of the anticlinal axis; and ò the anticline doubly plunging to both the north and south. The mineralisation exhibits vein-like features as well as epigenetic textures. Its boundaries are sharp, its thickness varies rapidly down dip and along strike, and no alteration halo exists though stringer veins of quartz-carbonate-pyrite ¦ sphalerite/galena occur in close proximity. A number of sulphide mineral assemblages have been recognised, each separated by periods of deformation and partially replacing the earlier assemblages. Vertically continuous zonation patterns highlight the presence of rich galena-sphalerite-silver in zones of maximum dilation and pyrite-arsenopyrite-gold concentrated at the along strike peripheries. The genetic model proposed has the mineralisation occurring whilst the transpressional regime was active. It was deposited from the same fluid that elsewhere in the Geosyncline formed the stratiform deposits higher in the sedimentary pile. Hydrocarbons sourced from the organic-rich Whites

Jan 1, 1994

By V Pfannenstiel

The United States (US) coal mining industry has been working under comprehensive planning, operating and rehabilitation regulatory requirements for nearly 35 years. The public desire for environmental protection during mining and rehabilitation following mining to achieve post-mining land use and sustainability goals has been a major factor and continues to influence the process. Mining companies have evolved operations to achieve outcomes that address the desired goals and regulatory requirements cost-effectively and successfully. Over the 35 year regulatory period, requirements for more diverse topography, specialised revegetation communities, landform stability and assured sustainability have increased and become more complex. These challenges are effectively met by maximising integration of mine planning and operating with the rehabilitation process. Rehabilitation is then implemented in a more timely and efficient manner and with effective results that achieve desired outcomes, commonly with added value. Peabody Energy (Peabody) has taken this approach in its US operations and this paper discusses an integrated approach and illustrates learnings and results with examples from several of its western US operations.CITATION:Pfannenstiel, V, 2012. Integrated planning, mining and rehabilitation for effective results and sustainable land use - A western United States perspective, in Proceedings Life-of-Mine 2012 , pp 219-232 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 10, 2012