Critical role of risk management in ground engineering and opportunities for improvement

Green mining is concerned with mining in a sustainable manner, such that the needs of the present are met without compromising future generations. The achievement of this objective depends on balancing social, environmental and economic objectives and has to have regard to both active mining operations and legacy issues associated with mine closure. Ground engineering has a critical role in achieving green mining objectives but its contribution is characterised by pervasive uncertainty. Uncertainty equates to risk. This means that ground engineering should be practiced within a risk management framework that aims to both prevent unwanted outcomes and to mitigate their consequences to an acceptable level. This keynote address presents the fundamentals of risk management and demonstrates its effectiveness by reference to improvements in the safety performance of the NSW coal sector over the past three decades. Nevertheless, ground control remains a mix of art and science, relying heavily on judgements which should be premised on knowledge, skill and experience (that is, competence). Risk management has now been enshrined in mining legislation and operating practice in Australia for over two decades. Notwithstanding this, near-hit and accident and incident investigations, commissions of inquiry and legal proceedings almost invariably identify deficiencies and opportunities for improvements necessary to achieve the objectives of sustainable mining. Three of the more important opportunities which have global application in relation to ground engineering are discussed. These relate to the vexing issue of defining competency in ground engineering; the criteria for undertaking rigorous risk assessment; and the need for ground engineers to become involved in mine rehabilitation and closure planning over the full life cycle of a mine, commencing at the prefeasibility stage.