Development advice maps: mining subsidence

Abstract

In 1985 the Department of the Environment/Welsh Office commissioned the ’South Wales Desk Study - Mining Subsidence’. This project was to develop a method for preparing Development Advice Maps giving advice to planners and developers on abandoned shallow mining. The pilot area for this study was centred in Ebbw Vale and supplemented by a detailed review of mining subsidence throughout the whole of South Wales. Subsequent to this study a follow on project was undertaken in 1991 in the Borough of Islwyn. The purpose of the study was to confirm the methodology developed during the first study and produce Development Advice Maps which could be introduced into the planning process at Islwyn Borough Council. Maps were introduced into the planning system with planning guidelines and were monitored for 15 months. The monitoring period has indicated that the Development Advice Maps, drafted in accordance with the procedure developed from the South Wales Mining Desk Study, are generally reliable.This paper discusses the method of preparation of Development Advice Maps in South Wales and proposes a strategy of risk management with which to appraise potential mining subsidence.

Methods for Estimating Associated Risks of Sinkhole Occurrences: A Demonstration Using Available Data from the Ruhr Valley Region of Germany

“…We are in full agreement with this assessment, and further information on different types of coal mine subsidence is to be found in Speck and Bruhn (1995), Waltham (1989), Whittaker and Reddish (1989), and Scott and Statham (1998), to whom we refer the reader. However, as we shall see in the next section, there is just not enough information available from public authorities to determine whether one or more active mechanisms dominate.…”

“…To date, even with the limited quality and quantity of sinkhole data available, there seems not to be available any such attempts to grade for risk, nor any understanding of the relative importance of different geological factors and anthropogenic influences in causing or enhancing the appearance of such potential economic and human disaster scenarios. However, a start on this problem has been made in the volume edited by Maund and Eddleston (1998), and, in particular, in the paper in that volume by Scott and Statham (1998) as well as by Cole (1988), although, in our opinion, there is still a considerable way to go before we can understand and mitigate potential risks and hazards from such situations. In that regard, the absence of critical data to aid in such investigations is a major drawback, and one that led to the efforts here to provide probabilistic procedures to address, to some extent, the basic problems.…”

A Remote Sensing Approach to Environmental Monitoring in a Reclaimed Mine Area

“…Remote Sensing (RS) techniques and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have shown clear advantages over conventional field monitoring and laboratory measurements for assessing long-to short-term landscape dynamics [15][16][17]. Particularly for large areas, where surveying using Global Positioning System (GPS) and ground levelling are time-consuming, expensive, and labor-intensive, RS and GIS provide prompt and efficient information on geological changes and subsidence [4].…”

A Remote Sensing Approach to Subsidence and Vegetation Degradation in a Reclaimed Mine Area 

“…This, in turn, leads to several adverse environmental impacts, such as vegetation degradation, soil erosion, flooding, sinkhole formation, and soil and water contamination [5][6][7][8] as well as to damages of infrastructures [9]. The geological changes and associated environmental impacts may continue even after reclamations if mines are not properly backfilled [10][11][12].…”