Open-pit mining , also known as open-cast or open-cut mining and in larger contexts mega-mining , is a surface mining technique that extracts rock or minerals from the earth.
31-690: Collection of artificial lakes in Germany created through lignite mining [REDACTED] This article needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Central German Lake District" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR ( May 2021 ) ( Learn how and when to remove this message ) The Central German Lake District ( German: Mitteldeutsches Seenland)
62-447: A mine that contribute to this load: drilling , blasting, loading, and hauling . Waste rock is hauled to a waste dump. Waste dumps can be piled at the surface of the active pit, or in previously mined pits. Leftover waste from processing the ore is called tailings , and is generally in the form of a slurry . This is pumped to a tailings dam or settling pond, where the water is reused or evaporated. Tailings dams can be toxic due to
93-7073: A nature reserve Cospudener See ( 51°16′10″N 12°20′07″E / 51.269444°N 12.33527°E / 51.269444; 12.33527 ( Cospudener See ) ) 436 1993–2000 Beaches, water sports, recreation Geiseltalsee ( 51°18′29″N 11°53′07″E / 51.30796°N 11.88536°E / 51.30796; 11.88536 ( Geiseltalsee ) ) 1842 2003–2011 Bathing, water sports, recreation Grabschützer See ( 51°28′49″N 12°16′55″E / 51.480278°N 12.281944°E / 51.480278; 12.281944 ( Grabschützer See ) ) 130 1997–2022 Gremminer See ( 51°45′05″N 12°27′01″E / 51.7513°N 12.4503°E / 51.7513; 12.4503 ( Gremminer See ) ) 541 2002–2012 Ferropolis - museum and event location Gröberner See ( 51°42′15″N 12°26′59″E / 51.7043°N 12.4496°E / 51.7043; 12.4496 ( Gröberner See ) ) 374 2003–2013 Water sports, gastronomy, RV campsites, resorts Großer Goitzschesee ( 51°36′50″N 12°22′35″E / 51.6140°N 12.3763°E / 51.6140; 12.3763 ( Großer Goitzschesee ) ) 1331 1999–2002 Water sports, leisure, landscape art Großkaynaer See ( 51°16′50″N 11°56′25″E / 51.2805°N 11.9404°E / 51.2805; 11.9404 ( Großkaynaer See ) ) 255 1996–2012 Großstolpener See ( 51°08′19″N 12°20′06″E / 51.1387°N 12.3349°E / 51.1387; 12.3349 ( Großstolpener See ) ) 28 1992–1998 Lido and gastronomy Hainer See ( 51°10′08″N 12°27′35″E / 51.1688°N 12.4598°E / 51.1688; 12.4598 ( Hainer See ) ) 560 1999–2010 Water sports and leisure (planned) Harthsee ( 51°05′10″N 12°32′54″E / 51.0861°N 12.5482°E / 51.0861; 12.5482 ( Harthsee ) ) 88 1985–1996 Bathing, gastronomy, campsite Haselbacher See ( 51°05′00″N 12°23′55″E / 51.0834°N 12.3985°E / 51.0834; 12.3985 ( Haselbacher See ) ) 334 1993–2002 Water sports, bathing Haubitzer See ( 51°09′43″N 12°29′16″E / 51.1620°N 12.4878°E / 51.1620; 12.4878 ( Haubitzer See ) ) 158 1999–2006 Water sports and leisure (planned) Holzweißiger See ( 51°35′46″N 12°19′49″E / 51.5960°N 12.3303°E / 51.5960; 12.3303 ( Holzweißiger See ) ) 47 2005–2006 Water sports, bathing Kahnsdorfer See ( 51°10′34″N 12°25′39″E / 51.1761°N 12.4274°E / 51.1761; 12.4274 ( Kahnsdorfer See ) ) 121 1999–2018 Nature reserve Kulkwitzer See ( 51°18′33″N 12°14′53″E / 51.3093°N 12.2480°E / 51.3093; 12.2480 ( Kulkwitzer See ) ) 170 1963–1973 Water sports and lesiure Ludwigsee ( 51°34′50″N 12°18′59″E / 51.5806°N 12.3165°E / 51.5806; 12.3165 ( Ludwigsee ) ) 86 1993–2007 Bathing, Nature Markkleeberger See ( 51°15′56″N 12°24′26″E / 51.2655°N 12.4071°E / 51.2655; 12.4071 ( Markkleeberger See ) ) 249 1993–2005 Water sports and leisure Muldestausee ( 51°38′23″N 12°24′31″E / 51.6398°N 12.4085°E / 51.6398; 12.4085 ( Muldestausee ) ) 630 1975–1976 Nature, leisure, recreation, Water sports Neuhäuser See ( 51°34′00″N 12°19′53″E / 51.5666°N 12.3314°E / 51.5666; 12.3314 ( Neuhäuser See ) ) 155 1998–2006 Nature Pahnaer See ( 51°02′54″N 12°29′50″E / 51.0482°N 12.4973°E / 51.0482; 12.4973 ( Panaer See ) ) 26 1955–1970 Lido, gastronomy, campsite Paupitzscher See ( 51°34′56″N 12°20′55″E / 51.5821°N 12.3486°E / 51.5821; 12.3486 ( Paupitzscher See ) ) 80 1993–2006 Fauna-Flora-Habitat of European relevance Pereser See ( 51°07′44″N 12°23′05″E / 51.1290°N 12.3847°E / 51.1290; 12.3847 ( Pereser See ) ) 589 2045–2051 Watersports (planned) Raßnitzer See ( 51°22′41″N 12°05′55″E / 51.3780°N 12.0987°E / 51.3780; 12.0987 ( Raßnitzer See ) ) 315 1998–2002 Largely nature reserve Runstädter See ( 51°18′00″N 11°56′08″E / 51.3000°N 11.9356°E / 51.3000; 11.9356 ( Runstädter See ) ) 233 2001–2003 Schladitzer See ( 51°26′19″N 12°20′08″E / 51.4385°N 12.3356°E / 51.4385; 12.3356 ( Schladitzer See ) ) 220 1999–2012 Water sports and leisure Seelhausener See ( 51°35′03″N 12°25′20″E / 51.5842°N 12.4223°E / 51.5842; 12.4223 ( Seelhauser See ) ) 634 2000–2002 Bathing, water sports(planned) Speicherbecken Borna ( 51°06′38″N 12°27′05″E / 51.1105°N 12.4514°E / 51.1105; 12.4514 ( Speicherbecken Borna ) ) 265 1964–1980 Flood protection, fish breeding, nature reserves, beaches Störmthaler See ( 51°14′03″N 12°27′05″E / 51.2342°N 12.4514°E / 51.2342; 12.4514 ( Störmthaler See ) ) 733 2003–2012 Water sports, nature reserves, art (planned) Wallendorfer See ( 51°22′33″N 12°03′36″E / 51.3757°N 12.0601°E / 51.3757; 12.0601 ( Wallendorfer See ) ) 338 1998–2004 Leisure, nature reserve Werbeliner See ( 51°28′43″N 12°18′33″E / 51.4785°N 12.3093°E / 51.4785; 12.3093 ( Werbeliner See ) ) 443 1998–2010 Bird protection area Werbener See ( 51°11′43″N 12°14′12″E / 51.1952°N 12.2368°E / 51.1952; 12.2368 ( Werbener See ) ) 79 1998–2000 Bathing, fishing, diving Zwenkauer See ( 51°14′12″N 12°18′28″E / 51.2366°N 12.3079°E / 51.2366; 12.3079 ( Zwenkauer See ) ) 970 2006–2015 leisure, nature reserve, flood protection (planned) See also [ edit ] Leipzig River Network Lusatian Lake District - of similar origins [REDACTED] Wikivoyage has
124-429: A number of worked-out mines. After mining ends at a location, the mine area may undergo land rehabilitation . Waste dumps are contoured to flatten them out, to further stabilize them. If the ore contains sulfides it is usually covered with a layer of clay to prevent ingress of rain and oxygen from the air, which can oxidize the sulfides to produce sulfuric acid , a phenomenon known as acid mine drainage . This
155-477: A result of room and pillar mining . Untopping removes the overburden from above this, opens up the mine from above, and then allows the previously 'trapped' minerals to be won. Untopping was a feature of Welsh slate workings in the 1930s and 2000s, where Martyn Williams-Ellis, manager at Llechwedd found that earlier Victorian workings could be kept profitable with the newly mechanised techniques for bulk excavation to extract their pillars, and more recently across
186-590: A travel guide for Central German Lake District . References [ edit ] ^ "Mitteldeutsche Seenlandschaft" . Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Central_German_Lake_District&oldid=1163248896 " Categories : Artificial lakes of Germany Regions of Saxony Mining in Germany Mining in Saxony Hidden categories: Articles with short description Short description
217-450: Is a crucial aspect of determining whether or not a geotechnical engineering design for open-pit slopes is attainable. Groundwater control systems, which include dewatering and depressurization wells, may also have a large impact on local groundwater. Because of this, an optimization-based version of the control system is required to ensure that local and regional hydro-geological impacts are within acceptable ranges. Open Pit depressurization
248-737: Is a group of artificial lakes that are the result of extensive open pit lignite mining. The area around Leipzig is sometimes separately marketed as the "Leipzig Lake District" ( German: Leipziger Seenland) or the Neuseenland . The Lausitzer und Mitteldeutsche Bergbauverwaltungsgesellschaft is in charge of the technological side of the area. List of lakes [ edit ] Name (and Location) (Planned) final size in hectares Flooding Use Bockwitzer See ( 51°07′55″N 12°32′47″E / 51.13186°N 12.54638°E / 51.13186; 12.54638 ( Bockwitzer See ) ) 168 1995–2004 Primarily
279-406: Is considered one of the most dangerous sectors in the industrial world . It causes significant effects to miners' health, as well as damage to the ecological land and water. Open-pit mining causes changes to vegetation, soil, and bedrock, which ultimately contributes to changes in surface hydrology, groundwater levels, and flow paths. Additionally, open-pit produces harmful pollutants depending on
310-509: Is determined by the size of the equipment being used, generally 20–40 metres wide. Downward ramps are created to allow mining on a new level to begin. This new level will become progressively wider to form the new pit bottom. Most walls of the pit are generally mined on an angle less than vertical. Waste rock is stripped when the pit becomes deeper, therefore this angle is a safety precaution to prevent and minimize damage and danger from rock falls. However, this depends on how weathered and eroded
341-443: Is different from Wikidata Articles needing additional references from May 2021 All articles needing additional references Pages using gadget WikiMiniAtlas Open pit mining Open-pit mines are used when deposits of commercially useful ore or rocks are found near the surface where the overburden is relatively thin. In contrast, deeper mineral deposits can be reached using underground mining. Open-pit mining
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#1732765600750372-401: Is the process of removing tensions or pressure from different areas of a mine. Depressurization helps to make open-pit mines more stable and secure. By using an integrated mine slope depressurization program the likelihood that mine plans can be achieved, and at an acceptable level of risk increase drastically. Depressurization allows considerable expansions of a mine, and can extend the life of
403-559: Is then generally covered with soil , and vegetation is planted to help consolidate the material. Eventually this layer will erode, but it is generally hoped that the rate of leaching or acid will be slowed by the cover such that the environment can handle the load of acid and associated heavy metals. There are no long term studies on the success of these covers due to the relatively short time in which large-scale open-pit mining has existed. It may take hundreds to thousands of years for some waste dumps to become "acid neutral" and stop leaching to
434-668: The Lusatian Lake District , the Central German Lake District or the Upper Palatinate Lake District. A particular concern in the formation of these lakes is acid mine drainage . Open-pit mines create a significant amount of waste. Almost one million tons of ore and waste rock can move from the largest mines per day, and a couple thousand tons moved from small mines per day. There are generally four main operations in
465-594: The Philippines and Indonesia . In 2024, nickel mining and processing was one of the main causes of deforestation in Indonesia . Open-pit cobalt mining has led to deforestation and habitat destruction in the Democratic Republic of Congo . Open-pit mines operating in an area with heavy groundwater features may eventually face hydrology-related problems. This includes heaving and bursting of
496-732: The Splash! Festival , Melt! Festival , and the "Ferropolis in Flammen" ("Ferropolis in flames") festival. Also some drifting events such as Drift Masters. The museum is located on the site of a former strip mining operation. The minister of finance of the Saxony-Anhalt formally created the project on 14 December 1995. In December 2005, the museum was integrated into the " European Route of Industrial Heritage ". 51°45′42″N 12°26′56″E / 51.76167°N 12.44889°E / 51.76167; 12.44889 This article about
527-418: The mineral resource is exhausted, or an increasing ratio of overburden to ore makes further mining uneconomic. After open-pit mines are closed, they are sometimes converted to landfills for disposal of solid waste. Some form of water control is usually required to keep the mine pit from becoming a lake. Several former open-pit mines have been deliberately converted into artificial lakes, forming areas such as
558-402: The areas surrounding open-pit mines. Open-pit gold mining is one of the highest potential mining threats on the environment as it affects the air and water chemistry. The exposed dust may be toxic or radioactive, making it a health concern for the workers and the surrounding communities. Open-pit nickel mining has led to environmental degradation and pollution in developing countries such as
589-472: The environment. The dumps are usually fenced off to prevent livestock denuding them of vegetation. The open pit is then surrounded with a fence , to prevent access, and it generally eventually fills up with ground water . In arid areas it may not fill due to deep groundwater levels. In Germany, the world's largest producer of lignite (virtually all of which these days is mined open-pit), the former mines are usually converted to artificial lakes . To mitigate
620-429: The hole. The interval of the benches depends on the deposit being mined, the mineral being mined, and the size of the machinery that is being used. Generally, large mine benches are 12 to 15 metres thick. In contrast, many quarries do not use benches, as they are usually shallow. Mining can be conducted on more than one bench at a time, and access to different benches is done with a system of ramps. The width of each bench
651-454: The mine by 10 to 15 years. One technique used in depressurization is annealing. Annealing is the slow heating and cooling of a metal, alloy or glass. This slow heating and cooling relieves the internal stress of surrounding areas. Annealing will increase a material's workability and durability, which overall increases open-pit mine safety. When groundwater pressures cause problems in open-pit mines, horizontal drains are used to aid in accelerating
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#1732765600750682-450: The mine floor due to excessive uplift pressure. A groundwater control system must be installed to fix problems caused by hydrology. The formation of an appropriate open-pit slope design, changes throughout the life of a mine. It is based mainly on an ever-increasing understanding of the rock mass conditions, including groundwater and associated pressures that may be acting within the slopes. The reduction of groundwater related to pore pressures
713-446: The presence of unextracted sulfide minerals , some forms of toxic minerals in the gangue , and often cyanide which is used to treat gold ore via the cyanide leach process . If proper environmental protections are not in place, this toxicity can harm the surrounding environment. Open-pit mining involves the process of disrupting the ground, which leads to the creation of air pollutants. The main source of air pollutants comes from
744-407: The problem of acid mine drainage mentioned above, flooding is often done with the water of nearby rivers instead of using groundwater alone. In some cases, calcium oxide or other basic chemicals have to be added to the water to neutralize the pH -value. Gold is generally extracted in open-pit mines at 1 to 5 ppm (parts per million) but in certain cases, 0.75 ppm gold is economical. This
775-404: The rocks are, and the type of rocks involved. It also depends on the amount of structural weaknesses occur within the rocks, such as a faults , shears , joints or foliations . The walls are stepped. The inclined section of the wall is known as the batter, and the flat part of the step is known as the bench or berm. The steps in the walls help prevent rock falls continuing down the entire face of
806-412: The slope depressurization process. Which helps to prevent large scale slope failure in the mine. Horizontal drains are used to lower pore pressure by reducing groundwater head, which enhances slope stability. A form of open-cast quarrying may be carried out as 'untopping'. This is done where a previous underground mine is becoming uneconomic or worked-out, but still leaves valuable rock in place, often as
837-416: The transportation of minerals, but there are various other factors including drilling, blasting and the loading and unloading of overburden. These type of pollutants cause significant damage to public health and safety in addition to damaging the air quality. The inhalation of these pollutants can cause issues to the lungs and ultimately increase mortality. Furthermore, the pollutants affect flora and fauna in
868-517: The type of mineral being mined, and the type of mining process being used. Miners typically drill a series of test holes to locate an underground ore body. From the extracted samples, they can determine the extent of the ore. This helps them determine the likely location of the veins or benches of ore and its commercial value. Open-pit mines that produce building materials and dimension stone are commonly referred to as quarries . Open-cast mines are dug on benches , which describe vertical levels of
899-466: The wall. In some instances additional ground support is required and rock bolts , cable bolts and shotcrete are used. De-watering bores may be used to relieve water pressure by drilling horizontally into the wall, which is often enough to cause failures in the wall by itself. A haul road is usually situated at the side of the pit, forming a ramp up which trucks can drive, carrying ore and waste rock. Open-pit mines are typically worked until either
930-523: The world. Listed are the world's ten largest open-pit mines in 2015. Ferropolis Ferropolis , "the city of iron", is an open-air museum of huge mid-20th century industrial machines in Gräfenhainichen , a city between Wittenberg and Dessau , Germany . These can measure up to 30 meters high and 120 meters long, and weigh up to 1,980 tons. The area is also used for several events such as opera performances or music festivals, including
961-524: Was achieved by bulk heap leaching at the Peak Hill mine in western New South Wales , near Dubbo , Australia . Nickel , generally as laterite, is extracted via open-pit down to 0.2%. Copper can be extracted at grades as low as 0.11% to 0.2%. Open-pit mining is a common method to extract minerals and samples from the Earth. Due to being cost-effective, this method is very popular and is used all over