Integrated Mining Monitoring for Open-pit and Underground Mines

Abstract

Summary Monitoring of mining impact has become increasingly important as the awareness of safety and environmental protection is rising. Our project Integrated Mining Impact Monitoring (i2Mon), funded by European Commission – Research Fund for Coal and Steel, intends to monitor mining-induced impact, in particular, of ground movement. The monitoring system comprises terrestrial measurement and remote sensing: levelling, GPS, LiDAR scanning, UAV survey, and SAR interferometry. The aim is to launch an interactive GIS-based platform called DMT SAFEGUARD as an early warning and decision making service for mining industry. Our paper focuses on work package 2 – space and airborne remote monitoring. This package is to develop a SAR-based approach to monitor the mining-induced ground movement over an extensive area at millimetre level. The first test site is a deactivated open-pit mine in Germany. The whole area was reclaimed into a post-mining lake. Therefore, monitoring the mining impact is in particular crucial for the safety. The second test site was an active underground mining in Poland. We must monitor the in-situ ground movement carefully as part of the influenced area covers settlements. All the results were integrated into SAFEGUARD. The important steps and key results are demonstrated in this paper.