Monitoring and Prediction of Slope Failure Instability in a Limestone Mine

Slope Stability

Abstract

In a mining operation, maintaining safe and cost-effective slope geometries is critical. Monitoring has often proven to be a valuable method in dealing with potential slope instability when design analysis and engineering judgment have dictated conservative and usually more expensive problem solutions. Unexpected pit wall collapses could have a significant impact on the safety and profitability of an open pit operation. As a result, a well-planned and executed monitoring programme can permit operation with a lower theoretical margin of safety. Monitoring provides an important check on design parameters and can measure the effects of corrective actions, which lead to increased significant production and reduced economic losses. Often, early warning of impending failure can be established. In this paper, a slope failure of a pit wall stability on the north side of a limestone mine which leads to stopping the workings by the regulatory body was studied. A comprehensive slope monitoring strategy has been implemented to improve safety and mine more economically using different slope monitoring techniques like visual inspection, prism monitoring, piezometer and wireline extensometers are also used to predict the instability of the failure area of a limestone mine. All of these monitoring tools offer primary monitoring, which is used to determine the riskiness of a failure area or zone. It gives early warning of further failure or instability if the slope is detected in challenging conditions. Today's mining regulations place a strong emphasis on the proactive identification and mitigation of risks to employees and the operation. This paper focuses on reducing operational and safety risks through an approved monitoring programme. Based on slope monitoring results of the failure area, remedial measures to improve the stability of the workings are presented for a limestone mine.