a coal trip of mine....

The last of the 3 large open-cut coal mines in the LaTrobe Valley, I visited on Friday - Hazelwood.

This has most recently been in the news as the OC sits adjacent to the Princes Highway which is currently closed due to signs of land subsidence. Due to the amount of rain in the area this year, the ground is saturated  which can cause some instability. 

This poses the question of how close should the 'cut'  be to infrastructure?

Why is the main highway situated so close to the OC and what can (if anything) be done to stabilise the area to avoid major catastrophe?

 

Water from underground aquifers beneath the open-cut is processed and cooled in some ponds near the bottom of the open-cut (120m depth)

Earth works to remove topsoil from one location to cap over burden dumps for rehabilitation + revegetation.

Creek diversion designed in snake bends to slow water movement

Overburden at the top of the coal seam

At the bottom of the open-cut ponds collecting the water which naturally drain into the pit. There are 3 large ponds whose water is used for fire and dust suppression.

The teeth marks from the bucket-wheel excavator 

 

 A little more about processes...

Now is matter of devising all the closure scenarios, what forms new programs start to create and how these uses of the landscape are integrated sequentially. Any suggestions welcome...