Infrastructure Stability Monitoring

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PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

Category

• Topographic information
• Impact assessment
• Change detection / continuous monitoring
• Land cover / use
• Near surface geology

• Surface deformation
• Precision ortho-images
• Terrain information
• Water quantity & quality

Uses

Challenges addressed

• Development and Operations – Structural Stability
• Closure and Aftercare – Structural Stability

Geo-information needs

• DO-13: Pit slopes stability
• DO-14: Tailings Storage Facilities stability
• DO-15: Waste Rock Dumps stability
• CA-11: Demonstrate long term structural stability of key infrastructure – WRD’s / TSF’s

Description

This product provides information on the stability/deformations of infrastructure and assets, based on the satellite-based InSAR (Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar) technique. It provides mm-precise measurements over large areas on a weekly-monthly basis and can serve as scanning tool for the whole mine and its direct environment. Depending on the satellite, up to 100,000 measurements per km² can be obtained.

Typical mining applications of this product are monitoring the stability of tailings storage facilities, waste rock dumps, pit slopes, transport roads, buildings and the environment of the mine, both during and after operation. The advantages are that critical infrastructure can be monitored on a regular basis, in a fully automated manner and without human intervention, and that a complete view can be obtained of the deformations in the mining area and its direct environment. Furthermore, by using satellites, a uniform data format and quality can be obtained over all mines in the portfolio.

This technique is based on radar images from various radar satellites. The products from these satellites differ in terms of number of measurements per km², measurement frequency, price (free vs. paid imagery) and availability. In most locations worldwide, there is imagery available dating back to 2015 and for some locations even back to 1992. Therefore, it is easy to obtain a baseline of the deformations in the mine and thereby context of what is or has been happening. By using multiple satellites, vertical as well as horizontal (in the east-west direction) movements can be tracked.

Known restrictions / limitations

The highest measurement frequency that current satellites can obtain is once per couple of days, which could be too low for certain applications. If the deformations leading up to a failure can occur in the timespan of minutes/hours rather than days, it is better to use another system for intervention purposes.

Lifecycle stage and demand

Exploration

Environmental Assessment and Permitting

Design, Construction and Operations

Mine Closure and Aftercare

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Environmental Assessment & Permitting:

• Establishing a baseline measurement of movements already occurring on infrastructure present in the area before the mine was built and taken into operation.

Design, Construction & Operations:

• Design: Establishing a baseline measurement of movements already occurring in the area where the mine will be built. Potential to adjust the design of the mine infrastructure based on that information.
• Construction: Monitoring the movements of infrastructure present in the environment of the mine during the building process. This gives the possibility to adjust the building process and to assess potential claims based on thorough measurements.
• Operations: Monitoring the stability of critical mine infrastructure (tailings storage facilities, waste rock dumps, pit slopes, etc.) during operation. Using triggers to intervene or to plan long-term maintenance activities.

Mine Closure & Aftercare:

• Monitoring the stability of critical mine infrastructure (tailings storage facilities, waste rock dumps, pit slopes, etc.) after closure. Using triggers to plan long-term maintenance activities, without having to go to the (remote) mine location.

Geographic coverage

EARSC Thematic Domain

Domain

PRODUCT SPECIFICATIONS

Input data sources

Website

Minimum Mapping Unit (MMU)

The satellite can detect very small features (~decimeters), provided that objects and/or surfaces of interest reflect well enough. Generally, solid, stable, angular objects are the best reflectors.

Accuracy / constraints

Thematic accuracy:

The technique works best on solid, stable, angular objects like infrastructure, buildings, solid rock, etc. Water cannot be measured and vegetated surfaces are more difficult to measure.

Spatial accuracy:

Dependent on the satellite resolution. The measurement can be located on sub-pixel level, typically in the order of 1-5 meters.

Measurement accuracy:

The deformation/movement of the infrastructure can be determined with a precision of around 1 mm/yr.

Accuracy assessment approach & quality control measures

The quality is assessed by automated, thoroughly tested, quality control algorithms, delivering validated results. The quality of the product and the approach taken are described in an automatically-generated report, ensuring high quality and reproducibility.

Frequency / timeliness

Observation frequency:

Depending on the satellite, varying from once per 4 days to once per 24 days.

Timeliness of delivery:

Depending on the satellite provider, the service provider and the type of application, within 1-5 working days.

Availability

• Global coverage with free imagery, lower resolution, including archive since 2015 and in some locations since 1992.
• Global coverage on demand with paid imagery, higher resolution. Archive imagery available in some locations.

Delivery / output format

• Data via API (Application Programming Interface), as GIS file format (geopackage, shapefile, .kml, .csv, etc.) or in a webviewer.
• Triggers via API or email.
• Automated reporting in pdf.

USE CASE