Application of GIS Methods in Assessing Effects of Mining Activity on Surface Infrastructure

Tilt ( T ), curvature ( K ) and horizontal strain ( e ) in ground subsidence troughs are the basic deformation parameters, which are used in the assessment of mining effects on surface infrastructure. The parameters can be determined from mathematical functions describing the continuous displacement field. The latter can be obtained by the least squares fitting of selected displacement functions to results of three-dimensional monitoring of horizontal and vertical displacements at discrete points. A methodology based on spatial data modelling in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) facilitates the above process as demonstrated on the example of a mining area in Canada. Polish guidelines regarding classification of mining risk categories based on the values of these parameters have been used in the example.