8. Groundwater and mine water management

Groundwater is a resource first. Its management at mine level and as mine water is a major challenge. To preserve and protect groundwater in mining areas from overexploitation and to manage it properly, the approach should be sitespecific and engineering-oriented. Mining industry worldwide manages it through dewatering/pumping economically and properly. Both quality and quantity of groundwater and the intricate relationships between physical, chemical, and biological processes within mine deposits are a key to the development of effective strategies for water management. Application of "preventive approach" along with artificial recharge techniques and water conservation measures can remove the water management bottlenecks to a large extent. Hence, an approach to deal groundwater effectively works out better at different levels of management. The entire water management chain should be understood by all levels of management, that is, at corporate, at site, and at operations management level, and it has to be a "bottom-up approach rather than a topdown approach."

Looking at operational stage of surface mines (pit mine) which are working below the water table, the puncturing of water table results into the accumulation of water on dip side of the open mines. Due to heavy precipitation in limited period (downpour), such water accumulation problems lead to the hampering of normal mine production. Similarly watery underground mines have multistage pumping needs. Sustainable water management at mine sites has close linkages with production; hence to improve water management in the mining environment, the following areas need attention:


Clear and transparent policy and sound water management give a direction to the implementation plan and programs economically and as per the desire of the organization. Improvement in water management practices periodically and practically is imperative for GW management.

Planning and machinery used involve the site conditions and stage of operations, in the chain of water management. It requires innovative thinking so that planning is practical in implementation and percentage utilization of machinery is maximum. Routine condition monitoring (RCM) for routine maintenance of equipment and machinery should be cost-effective for proper water management in general.

Mine drainage can pose a serious threat to water quality and mine productivity. The importance of this issue becomes more critical as demand for resources grow. When complex metallic ore deposits are mined, the geochemical evaluation of mine drainage water becomes important in pollution evaluation as well as deciding
