Abstract
The concept of waste storage in underground salt mines is to use the host rock environment as a geological barrier, preventing the migration of hazardous substances. European and Polish law defines the geological conditions and the safety of underground storage. According to national regulations, the underground storage site location is based on the results of geological research contained in the hydrogeological and geological - engineering documentation. This paper presents the principles for assessment of the geological environment in a salt mine for the waste storage, in the context of national legislation. It has been shown that for the salt deposits the more detail range of geological research has to be defined to prepare relevant documentation and to assess the possibility of waste storage in salt mines.
Highlights
Underground salt workings that were developed during the salt deposit exploitation are used for industrial purposes other than salt extraction in many places of the world
The method is practiced on an industrial scale in few salt mines, mainly in Germany, where considerable experience has been gained in that area
The geological conditions presented above have been subjected to preliminary analysis in respect of the geological relationships existing in the mineral deposits and underground salt mines in Poland (Kunstman et al 2007)
Summary
Underground salt workings that were developed during the salt deposit exploitation are used for industrial purposes other than salt extraction in many places of the world. - thickness and strike of a geological formation, - rock mass strength and convergence, - number of aquifers with the parameters of underground waters, - underground water flow rates and directions within the rock mass, - overburden’s permeability, - fissure formation within the rock mass allowing for the migration of water solutions with corrosive properties, - reactivity of rocks affected by solutions, including swelling, soaking, and dissolution, - the volume of underground water inflow into the workings, - methane content, - temperature and pressures within the rock mass, - site location in respect of other workings, taking into account current natural hazards from: water, methane, gas and rock ejection, coal dust explosion, and rockbursts Those conditions referring to the particular deposit and mine may be beneficial for the placement of an underground waste disposal site and, together with the designed artificial barriers, may create an effective isolation system for specific types of waste, which should be documented in the evaluation of the project’s impact on the environment. The geological conditions presented above have been subjected to preliminary analysis in respect of the geological relationships existing in the mineral deposits and underground salt mines in Poland (Kunstman et al 2007)
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