Hydrogeological Features and Ground Water Control at Chambishi Mine, Zambia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17159/Abstract
This paper introduces the results of research on the hydrogeological conditions in Chambishi Mine area in Zambia. This mine is rich in ground water, and the discharge costs are high. The large volumes of water encountered and expected during mining constitute a major cost in mine planning and development. Hence, the research goal was to identify methods to reduce the discharge costs without greatly affecting the mining works.
Based on the observations, backfilling mining was gradually adopted at the mine to appropriately safeguard the integrity of the aquifuge above the ore body. The overlapping relation between an aquifer and aquifuge has been utilized to increase mine drainage efficiency. This measure has not only largely reduced the costs of mine drainage, but also protected the ground water environment in a better manner. Grouting was performed to treat the old drill holes that were not sealed after exploration drilling.
Further, possible water-conducting fracture zones were investigated. Cover drilling towards the suspected zone was performed to prevent the high-pressure ground water from shallower aquifers from entering mining stopes in deeply buried areas.
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Copyright (c) 2024 FAN YONG, Zhang DONGHONG, ZHAO XINGGUO, XU JINGYUAN
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