NUST MISIS’ College of Mining, Moscow, Russia

V. A. Eremenko, Director of the Research Center for Applied Geomechanics and Convergent Technologies in Mining, Professor at the Department of Physical Processes in Mining and Geocontrol, Professor of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Engineering Sciences, prof.eremenko@gmail.com
M. A. Kosyreva, Project Engineer at the Research Center for Applied Geomechanics and Convergent Technologies in Mining

Bustrinskaya Mining Company, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia
D. A. Driga, Chief Geomechanic

The authors substantiate the necessity of an independent audit to be carried out once in three years at underground ore mines. Such audit allows the comprehensive analysis of project solutions, as well as ensures safety and efficiency of mining, helps prevent adverse consequences such as rock bursts, landslides and rock falls, and ensures abidingness of legislative regulations. The auditing process follows the regulatory requirements which govern mining operations. It should be emphasized that the audit aims not at a detailed technical analysis of all components of a mine structure but at the evaluation of conformance of engineering standards and process flowsheets in use at a mine to geotechnical and technical aspects of the mine design. The article describes the procedure of geotechnical and technical audit of a mine. The sections and topics of the procedure are determined on the ground of the practical experience gained in mining research and in auditing operating mines. As a rule, when a mine gets an evaluation of 80 % and higher, it is defined that the geomechanical and geotechnical activity of the mine and the mine planning process conform with the adopted standards; a mine with an evaluation lower than 80 % must fix all nonconformities as soon as possible, usually, in 6–12 months, with the internal audit of the updates. The procedure enables evaluation of geotechnical and technical activity of a mine in conformity with the rules and standards effective in Russia, and determines the mine category.

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