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By J Channell, G Phillips

"The Chesney deposit, located 4 km south-east of Cobar consists of three copper-gold rich shoots that lie within a larger, copper dominant lode. A fourth gold rich shoot is located adjacent to the main deposit. The deposit exhibits a strong structural control on mineralisation, as brittle deformation during subvertical extension provided the requisite structural traps to precipitate sulfides from solution. It is postulated that the Great Chesney Fault acted as a fluid conduit, conveying fluids to the site of orebody formation. The continual supply of fluids resulted in cyclic brittle deformation when the fluid pressure exceeded the lithostatic pressure and the tensile strength of the Great Cobar Slate.Evidence supports the hypothesis that ore deposit formation was controlled by: a supply of mineralised fluids transported along the Great Chesney Faulta suitable location for the mineralised fluids to accumulate, accommodated by vertical extension and dilation in certain locationsthe creation of suitable structural traps to capture the sulfides. These traps formed as a result of fault-valve behaviour. Understanding the controls on mineralisation enables prediction of the location of other deposits with similar emplacement history, or extensions of current deposits.CITATION:Channell, J and Phillips, G, 2014. Understanding mineralisation controls – a case study of the Chesney deposit, in Proceedings Ninth International Mining Geology Conference 2014 , pp 301–312 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Aug 18, 2014

By Hindmarsh J. W, McCoy A. E R

Instantaneous outbursts of coal and gas have occurred at various times in several working districts of Metropolitan Colliery, N.S.W.They have occurred in headings only, under both hand and mechanised conditions, and with seam gas ranging from mainly methane to nearly pure carbon dioxide. A modification of inducer shotfiring using a shear cut was introduced in 1955, and in 1961 full face firing both to a machine cut shear and off the solid was introduced. The current series of outbursts -1961 to 1963 - has been induced under these systems with full control of the time of outburst, but without prediction, and with some disappointing production features.Various aspects of current conditions and practices at Metropolitan are considered singular, such as the coarse granulometry of outburst coal, the prevalence of floor heave, the absence of strong structures at outburst sites, the possibility of outburst at any stage in pillar formation up to the last few yards, the effect of rate of advance on outburst occurrence, and the mildness of many outbursts experienced.It is concluded that inducer shotfiring is a reliable control but it suffers by comparison with outburst-free conditions, and that control by preyention would be preferable.INTRODUCTIONThe phenomenon of instantaneous outbursts of coal and gas has been described in detail previously (Hargraves, 1958). Briefly, it is a combined gas and stress hazard of deep coal mining, usually occurring in virgin work and during active face advance, when coal and seam gas burst from the face into the workings.Instantaneous outbursts have occurred sporadically at Metropolitan Colliery, N.S.W., since 1895. Early outbursts were recorded as firedamp and recent outbursts are of blackdamp.Mining methods used have been conventional hand work, with progressive and relatively complete mechanisation over the past 25 years to substantially conventional...

Jan 1, 1964

By J Jackson, E Sellers

Blasting related indices were developed to quantify variation in rock strength and structure for each stope, and for each lift of each stope, as part of a Mine to Mill study at an underground open stope mine. The indices were derived from combinations of data from underground diamond drilling because the simplifying assumptions contained in the block model prevented sufficient differentiation in rock mass characteristics to enable adjustments to the blast design.Application of combinations of blasting related indices enabled the identification of stopes with a high potential for inconsistent and oversize fragmentation, underbreak and overbreak. The indices also fragmentation outcomes to deliver increased material flow within stopes, better digability and predict indicative mill throughput. The stopes with issuesCalibration of the results enabled adjustments to the blast design based on the rock mass conditions and accordingly improved the blast outcomes. This enabled improved productivity by reducing underbreak and overbreak, having a more appropriate fragmentation, which reduces unplanned rock handling and improves bogging. The reduction in recovery drilling creates huge opportunities to improve output by reducing production delays and decreasing the overall cost per tonne. By understanding the explosive performance and blast energy distribution in relation to rock mass blastability poor, performing designs in blind upholes and convex stopes were identified.The conclusion of the work is that value improvement, regarding increased revenue and reduced costs, can be achieved across the whole underground Mine to Mill process chain by developing stope based indices from the existing geological information to correctly tailor the blast design to the rock within, and surrounding, the stope.CITATION:Jackson, J and Sellers, E, 2017. Blasting related indices as the key to underground blasting improvements in a challenging rock mass, in Proceedings 13th AusIMM Underground Operators’ Conference 2017, pp 23–32 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Oct 16, 2017

By Dunne R, Defilippi J

Dump leaching began at Teller in late-1988 at a rate of 4 MTPA and has been progressively expanded to the present rate of 10 MTPA. Teller's on-going commitment to dump leaching is driven by the amenability of gold ores to the process and the availability of large tonnages of low grade gold ore. The sequence of evaluating ores for dump leaching involves rolling bottle tests on coarsely ground ore, followed by small and large column leaching and finally trial heaps. Trial heap tests are very expensive and an alternative approach to this is large diameter column leaching.A four-column permanent facility was built at Teller to specifically evaluate the leaching characteristics of new dump leach ores. Details of construction, operation and dismantling are discussed in the paper. Capital cost for the four column facility was some $45 940, while operating costs are about $24 800 per column.

Jan 1, 1992

The mining industry has recognised for some time the importance of supporting programs which serve to educate the Australian public about the socio-economic benefits of mineral resource development. More recently, industry leaders have realised that the future development of the industry will depend on attracting sufficient young people to commit to a career in the industry. Apart from lending support to the traditional education institutions in Australia, the industry now has the opportunity to participate in the development of education programs in museums. Whilst historic, mining-related theme parks such as Sovereign Hill and Coal Creek in Victoria serve very effectively the objective of relating past mining activities to the socio-economic development of Australia, there still exists the need to provide a facility which, under the same roof, excites interest in geology, mining, mineral processing and the role of minerals and energy in modern society. The redeveloped Geological and Mining Museum (the "Mining Museum"), which is located in The Rocks area of Sydney, meets this objective. With the central themes of formation and transformation this new Museum, which aims to be the best of its type in the world, will use modern museum exhibit techniques and the resources of the Minerals and Energy Information Centre to educate the community including teachers and school children. In the best tradition of museums, outstanding mineral and other collections will complement a comprehensive range of interactive, high technology exhibits which will include a number of exploratory "hands on" facilities. Australian companies are joining with Government to fund this exciting new museum. There is still a need for industry professionals to realise that a modern "mining" museum is no longer just a repository for objects of mining heritage but is also an important centre which serves as an important educational and public relations interface. The Education Section of the new "Mining Museum", which is linked closely with the new Minerals and Energy Information Centre, will be working closely with appropriate mining-related Tertiary institutions to develop specific career programs aimed at secondary students who wish to pursue a career in the mineral resource industries.

Jan 1, 1989

By McLennan R. G

The principle of personal safety is as old as the human race. The application of this principle to industry is of much more recent origin, and may be said to be almost exclusively the product of the twentieth century. The enormous strides in technique and production mode prior to the turn of the century had been achieved without any real regard for the crippled human by-products of that expansive era. It was accepted that. accidents were inevitable and formed part of the price that must be paid for production. It was not until 1885 that the first Workmen's Compensation Act was passed in Germany making the employer financially liable for injuries suffered on his plant.With awakening social conscience came the first organised efforts to reduce accidents in industry. Early 19th century literature dealing with the development of powerdriven machinery and the growth of industry in Europe contains many references to the unsafe and unhealthy working conditions that accompanied the change-over from the home workshop to the industrial plant. By the year 1900, there were in Germany - and a little later in England governmental regulations dealing with the guarding of hazardous machinery. American industry, now the acknowledged leader in industrial safety, admits freely that when an organised safety movement commenced in that country, there was already a considerable amount of information available to them from European experience. The steel industry was well to the fore in this work, and in...

Jan 1, 1957

By W Liu, S Gao, D Wei, B Cui, Z Guan, Y Shen

Beneficiation of low-grade fine-grained hematite ores becomes increasingly important due to rapid depletion of high quality iron ore resources. However, fine particles, especially ultra-fine particles, make efficient beneficiation of these ores more difficult. Therefore, methods to reduce the influence of fine particles must be considered to achieve better beneficiation performance. Analysis and systematical beneficiation tests were carried out on an ultra-fine-grained hematite ore slime from washing a fine grained hematite ore. Ore particles were found to be presented in loose soil. While some of the ore particles were agglomerated, they were very fine and contained up to 76.5 per cent -0.023 mm material. In this paper, using a single magnetic separation flow sheet with sodium silicate (SS) as a dispersing agent, a concentrate containing 65.05 per cent Fe was obtained at an iron recovery of 68.58 per cent from the hematite ore slime of 56.65 per cent Fe. The single magnetic separation flow sheet was simple and reliable, the agent SS was effective in dispersing ultra-fine particles. The results are believed to be applicable to similar hematite ores.CITATION:Wei, D, Guan, Z, Gao, S, Liu, W, Shen, Y and Cui, B, 2013. Beneficiation study of an ultra-fine-grained hematite ore slime, in Proceedings Iron Ore 2013 , pp 495-500 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Aug 12, 2013

By A Gerson, S Miller, R Smart, J Thomas

Environmental Geochemistry International (EGi) and the Ian Wark Research Institute (IWRI) collaborated in a three-year Australian Minerals Industry Research Association (AMIRA) research project (Project Number P387A) focussed on the prediction and kinetic control of acid mine drainage. As part of this project, single addition, and sequential net acid generation (NAG) testing was carried out on sulfide mineral samples. The test samples comprised a range of synthetic waste materials prepared using a quartz bulk and controlled quantities of the commonly occurring sulfide minerals; pyrite (FeS2), pyrrhotite (Fe7S8), arsenopyrite (AsFeS), chalcopyrite (CuFeS2), chalcocite (Cu2S), covellite (CuS), bornite (Cu5FeS4), galena (PbS) and sphalerite (ZnS). NAG test results clearly show that there are significant differences between the acid forming potential of sulfide minerals. The NAG test results for each mineral were compared with theoretical acidity values (NAPP*). The NAPP* calculation was based on stoichiometric oxidation reactions assumed for each of the sulfide minerals. Sequential NAG values for pyrite corresponds closely to predicted NAPP* values, confirming the assumption that pyrite oxidation occurs according to the stoichiometry assumed. For the pyrite sample with 5 wt per cent S, two NAG stages were sufficient for all of the sulfur to be released to solution. Since sulfides in waste materials will generally be dominated by pyrite, results also confirm the validity of including NAG testing for ARD evaluation of most waste rock. NAG testing confirms that of the sulfide minerals examined, only pyrite, pyrrhotite, arsenopyrite and chalcopyrite are acid producing, ie able to produce leachate with a pH less than 4.5. In the case of sphalerite, galena, bornite, chalcocite and covellite the pH of the final NAG solution was greater than 4.5. The significant differences between the acid forming potential of different sulfide minerals could lead to overestimation of acid producing potentials based on NAPP values calculated from total per cent S alone, ie assuming all S is present as pyrite. The oxidation of galena during the NAG test resulted in the consumption of acid. The examination of the galena surface by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) after oxidation in peroxide solution indicated the presence of polysulfide. The reaction of sulfide to polysulfide is acid consuming, thus explaining the net acid consuming behaviour of galena in the NAG test. This reaction pathway may provide a possible explanation for the lower than expected acid production observed for some of the other sulfide minerals examined.

Jan 1, 2003

By Zwaan J, Kepa J

Ok Tedi mine has become one of the major copper producers in the world. In the process of becoming of age, it overcame the challenges of operating in a locality which is young in geological terms, experiences very high rainfall and has a topography which gives rise to frequent landslides. This paper discusses some of the geological, mine and geotechnical engin- eering aspects of the Mt Fubilan ore deposit.

Jan 1, 1991

By M Dusci, A Trueman, S Poos, R Baumgartner, M Brittan

The Canahuire epithermal Au-Cu-Ag deposit in southern Peru is a complex and challenging deposit for metallurgical studies. It has issues of gold locking in sulfides and non-sulfides, deleterious elements and acid rock drainage (ARD). From scoping study to feasibility study, there has been considerable improvement in the understanding of the important geometallurgical characteristics that need to be measured and modelled. This paper presents the current understanding and the requirements to continue to provide optimal models for mining studies.Significant effort has been put into understanding the genesis of the deposit. Improved spatial and temporal understanding of lithology, alteration, structure and mineralogy was used to build a geological and alteration model of the deposit.Early metallurgical programs quantified the effect of head grade on process plant recoveries, but the geometallurgical and statistical analyses did not identify other physical characteristics that influence these recoveries. The studies improved the understanding of the nature of locked gold which can occur as minute inclusions (< 5 ¦m) in sulfides (primarily pyrite with lesser arsenopyrite, pyrite being 100 times more abundant than arsenopyrite) and gangue minerals (quartz and carbonates) as well as solid solution in arsenopyrite and pyrite.The presence of pyrite and the limited buffering capacity of waste rocks increases the potential ARD, which will require mitigation costs before, during and after operations. Waste rock ARD potential has been classified and incorporated in the geometallurgical model. The current classification of waste rock at Canahuire, using international classification standards, is limited due to the complexity of the deposit.Complex deposit metallurgy necessitates a complex process flow sheet, including flotation and cyanidation. Economic recovery will be constrained by the relationships between economic variable grade, other elements and mineralogy. These constraints and inter-relationships are difficult to establish throughout the deposit with a single test. A follow-up geometallurgical program is under investigation and will attempt, with the help of additional test work, to map areas of higher and lower recoveries. It is hoped that metallurgical response can be linked to measurable parameters other than head grade. If this is possible, these factors can be incorporated into future geometallurgical models.CITATION:Baumgartner, R, Dusci, M, Trueman, A, Brittan, M and Poos, S, 2013. Building a geometallurgical model for the Canahuire Epithermal Au-Cu-Ag Deposit, Southern Peru - past, present and future, in Proceedings The Second AusIMM International Geometallurgy Conference (GeoMet) 2013 , pp 51-58 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 29, 2013

By M Gao, V Lawson, W Valery

Changes in metal prices and mine output over recent years have required the Copper Concentrator of Mount Isa Mines to operate at annual tonnage rates varying from 4.0 million to 6.5 million tonnes. Several circuit combinations were operated during this period utilising up to two semi-autogenous grinding (SAG) mills and up to two ball mills. The aim was to maximise grinding efficiency and keep unit costs constant regardless of throughput rate. Measures to improve the SAG-ball mill unit operation were implemented with each circuit change. These included installation of a splitter to divert SAG Mill cyclone underflow back to the mill, increase SAG ball charge from four per cent v/v to eight per cent v/v, reduce in SAG top feed size and increase of ball mill grinding medium size. Modelling work and surveys led to a new design of the SAG liner profile from 60 rows of rail bar liners in a high-low arrangement to 40 rows of top hat liners in a high-high arrangement. An on-line SAG Mill feed sizing monitor was recently installed to improve grinding control.

Jan 1, 2000

Various methods and software have been trialled for simulation of Au grades at Boddington Mine. This covers in-house and public software as well as sequential and turning bands methods. The diversity of options was further expanded with comparison of point and direct block simulation. Some difficulties were encountered in incorporating high-grade restrictions. Altering parameters or software can make very significant differences and give results varying from estimations. This paper details a new simulation run with validation and tests for local calibration (or progressive correction) of the simulations to the estimations, focusing on reproduction of statistics. This approach brings to the forefront the question æwhat is the purpose of the simulations?Æ Results and some ideas for future applications at Boddington are summarised.

Sep 26, 2011

The Permian rocks at Gympie were first studied as far back as 1868 in conjunction with the discovery of gold. The relationship of the Gympie Group to other sequences in the Gympie Composite Terrane is an important subject of investigations in a new mapping project of the Geological Survey Program of the Department of Resource Industries.In two areas the Gympie Group has been divided into four defined formations. They are the Highbury Volcanics (base), Ram mutt Formation, South Curra Limestone and Tamaree Formation (top) in the Gympie area, and the Mant basalt (base), Kolbar Formation, Gigoomgan Limestone and Teebar Formation (top) in the Gigoomgan area. Geochemical and lithological evidence from the basal volcanics of the Gympie Group (Highbury Volcanics, Mant basalt) indicate that they developed in an intraoceanic island arc setting. The overlying volcaniclastic sediments (Rammutt Formation, Kolbar Formation), which contain some continentally-derived material, are mainly of local derivation and shallow-water marine. A hiatus is present at the top of the Early Permian Rammutt Formation and Kolbar Formation. Following the hiatus, limestone sedimentation characteristic of a basin of restricted circulation developed in the Late Permian. There is some evidence of a hiatus between the limestone deposition of the Gigoomgan and South Curra Limestones and the overlying probable turbidite deposits of the Teebar and Tamaree Pnrmatinnc

Jan 1, 1990

By J S. Moema, R Paton, J Zimba

Today, most organisations are familiar with the pressure to increase their effectiveness and efficiency, regardless of the nature of their business. Cost cutting and increased productivity are the main themes of many initiatives to ensure the profitability of operations and, ultimately, shareholder satisfaction. It is well known that the cost of comminution to liberate minerals such as gold from their respective ores is a major expense for mines. Comminution costs consist predominantly of grinding balls and electricity. However, there are no national or international standard specifications for grinding balls û on which a single mine may spend several million dollars per month. In addition, in the past mines generally did not specify the minimum requirements when purchasing grinding balls from suppliers. The result is that every supplier has its own grinding ball recipe (regarding chemistry and heat treatment), and is under no pressure to implement a quality assurance plan to ensure that a consistent product is delivered. The resulting variation in the quality of grinding balls leads to increased steel consumption rates and hence increased milling costs. A more stringent quality plan will generally not be welcomed by suppliers since this may entail further investments and/or reduce the production rate. In a sense, suppliers benefit from poor quality grinding balls as this leads to increased sales. Perhaps the main problem is a lack of understanding of the factors that influence grinding ball performance. This paper will describe the factors that influence the wear rate of grinding balls from both a microstructural perspective and a mill perspective. In addition, some insights are provided on the different grinding balls available and ways that users can verify their quality.

Jan 1, 2007

By D Brouwer, P Wild, B Belle

Due to the steep geo-thermal gradient in Bowen Basin area, as underground coalmines reach increased depths of extraction, the Bulk Air Cooling (BAC) requirements will increase as opposed to cooling the workplace using the ventilation means alone. One such mine has already been using a 4 MW surface BAC plant for the last six years to manage the working temperatures with reduced cooling efficiency as the mine expands. Due to the horizontal nature of the longwall mine layout, distances from the working face to intake shafts are rapidly expanding to over 6 km as opposed to the vertical mine layout of a hard rock mine. To improve the positional cooling efficiency, reduced panel pressure differentials, improved rib emission gas management, and intake dust management, small diameter intake shafts were located on the inbye end of production panels and halfway up the development panels with localised mobile small BAC plants. This paper summarises the results of extensive underground data of this innovative cooling concept for development and retreating longwall face heat management compared to a larger remote BAC plant.CITATION:Belle, B, Brouwer, D and Wild, P, 2017. The use of mid-panel ventilation shafts to improve positional cooling efficiency in a Bowen Basin longwall mine – a case study, in Proceedings Australian Mine Vent Conference 2017, pp 217–224 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Aug 28, 2017

By R H. Eric

Surface wave formation induced by a high-strength submerged jet in a bottom blown metallurgical vessels has been studied experimentally by using one-seventh water model of CLU (Creusot-Loire Uddeholm) reactor with two different tuyere configurations. Experimental results have been discussed in terms of the wave period, wave frequency and wave amplitude with respect to air injection rate and tuyere configuration at a 0.23 m bath height. The results from high speed photography observations displayed the formation of rotating surface waves which circulates within the water model. It was found that the frequency and the amplitude increased with gas injection rate. The wave period for off-centre nozzle orientation was found to be lower than those of the centre configuration. The experimental results also showed that the frequency of a rotating wave increases when the tuyere orientation becomes off-centred . The predicted amplitudes were in very good agreement with the experimental values over a range of gas flowrates between 0.00599m 3/s to 0.01081 m 3/s.

Jan 1, 2000

In the pursuit of commercial solutions for environmental issues, individual problems are often identified, considered and resolved in isolation from other environmental matters and always at the end of the cycle û after the problem has been created. Inter-relationships are neglected if they are not seen to obviously impact on a specific problem and the issue at hand is plucked from the environmental landscape and dealt with in total isolation to all else. In a Zero Waste approach to environmental matters, all outputs are pursued as potential inputs. Industrial processes are viewed as a variation on natureÆs theme and opportunity pursued above all else. When viewed from this perspective, industry appears to have forgotten its origins. It has forgotten that it is principally about people. The juggernaut of global trade has forgotten that it is a small part of a big landscape and that its principal participants, people, cannot exist without healthy soil. Commercial activity in all parts of the world relies heavily on the ability of agriculture to produce the necessary inputs for industrial production. The care and nurturing of our soils is fundamental, not only to the survival of humanity, but also to the economic systems that support that humanity and to the industry which profits by it. Actual levels of domestic recycling in many countries around the world seldom reflect the 90 plus per cent desire to recycle recorded in surveys conducted by local authorities in almost every country. If the desire to recycle is far removed from the end result, why is it that the systems provided are so ineffective? It is obvious that what we do need is a recycling system that both engages and rewards the participant and stimulates the innate desire to support the environment. A recent trial in New South Wales, Australia, demonstrated that by giving individual households credits for recycling organic wastes, not only will contamination levels fall dramatically, but increased yields, improved soil structure, improved land values, reduced fertiliser costs and increased water use efficiency give the farmer good economic reasons for purchasing and applying quality composted product. By underpinning and securing the agricultural community, we secure the future of industry. The æCity to SoilÆ project linked the economic on-farm benefits of compost use with reduced contamination through the provision of rewards paid for by the purchase of product by the farmer.

Jan 1, 2006

By Johns D. R

The producers of mineral sands on the East Coast of Australia might be regarded as having a simple task of selling Rutile and Zircon. Such is not the case. Differing quality and grain size requirements plus the dramatic increase in the percentage of mineral sold in a processed form have meant a large increase in the number of different end products handled. The resulting sales control problems are compounded by the need to be able to deliver against a large number of separate contracts which may relate to spot or long term sales in small quantities or in bulk shipments. Methods of helping management control this situation have been devised and incorporated into a suite of computer programs. Experience with the approach has been very satisfactory. The effect of changes to shipping schedules, commitment to new or changed orders, or proposed changes to production can be evaluated as and when necessary with little bother. Confidence in decisions taken is high since the process of data collection has been designed to involve

Jan 1, 1977

By Prakash AJ, Singh PK, Dhar BB

Safety and stability of underground mine openings, coal pillars and water dams in the near vicinity of operating surface mines are endangered from excessive blast induced vibrations. This paper deals with the investigations carried out in four coal mines. Simultaneous measurements at equal distances from the source indicated higher level of vibration on the surface than those produced in the underground workings. The values of peak particle velocity (PPV) measured on coal pillars, body of water dam were lower than those measured on roof and junctions of the roadways. The parting of coal (3-4.5 m) between two sections vibrated with higher PPV compared to the roof of top section and floor of bottom section. In one case the influence of total charge fired in a round was significant in generation of vibration compared to the maximum charge/delay where monitoring was done vertically below the source.

Jan 1, 1995

Well designed and maintained haul roads are the key to minimising truck haulage on-road hazards and costs, as well as increasing productivity. However, practically designing and managing a haul road for optimal performance is often diff cult to achieve. Poorly designed and built roads exhibit high rolling resistance - a one per cent increase in road rolling resistance can typically reduce speed on ramp by as much as ten per cent - and on the f at by up to 26 per cent. In the current economic climates, investment and operating decisions come under scrutiny. In the long run, this scrutiny returns improved efficiencies and leaner, healthier operations. The focus of this evolving evaluation process should and will certainly fall on haulage operations - simply by virtue of their contribution to overall cost of operations - often in excess of 50 per cent of total costs for deep open-pit mines. Whilst the end result - improved efficiency and reduced cost per ton hauled - is not in itself problematic, it is the route, or process followed to achieve these savings that needs to be carefully managed. We can be guided on this journey by our understanding of how a road is designed, and, critically, the interplay between a good design and safe, cost efficient haulage.This paper brief y summarises the evolution of mine haul road design, from the seminal USBM work of Kaufman and Ault in 1977, through to current geometric, structural, functional and maintenance management design components. These augmented design and management guidelines have been developed over the past decade, both in response to the requirements of mine operators for more safe and efficient haulage systems, and the truck manufacturers' requirements for a more predictable and controlled operating environment. These developments have been paralleled by the need to minimise haulage hazards, both from a health and safety perspective. Generally, both objectives have been achieved, but with some specific areas of design and operation still presenting ongoing potential health and safety hazards.The paper then summarises current design guidelines for these safety-critical issues, both from a road-design 'best-practice' and road management perspectives. Implementation of the approach is seen as a basis for reducing the potential of an under-designed mine road to lead to health and safety defects and secondly as a means of giving haul road safety and performance issues greater prominence in the minds of the road-user, operator, mine planner and designer alike.

Dec 6, 2010