Would you like to know more about blast you have experienced?
Ballarat Gold Mine has a network of five permanent and three “roaming” monitors measuring vibrations produced by underground blasting.
Vibration monitors continuously record background vibration until they are triggered by a blast. The blast event, usually lasting between 3-8 seconds, is logged on the device for later analysis. The secure device calculates for each blast a value called the Peak Particle Velocity (PPV). This value is used for compliance. It is chosen because it is a good indicator of disturbance and property damage.
An event report can be generated for each blast. The report will include detailed information about the blast, including: the time it occurred, PPV, duration, and the displacement and frequency of each blast component.
An event report for each stope firing is sorted by month below.
Humans are quite perceptible of vibration, however just because you felt or heard a rumble does not mean your property is at risk of damage. In fact, the levels of vibration produced by our underground blasts is significantly lower than the threshold that has been shown by scientific experimentation to damage even he weakest part of a building, such as the plaster or drywall.
The below presentation is taken from a 2014 report commissioned by Ballarat Gold Mine to review our blasting practice. It was conducted by Adrian Moore, an expert in the field working for Terrock Consulting Engineering. This presentation will explain the science behind blast vibration, clarifying that is poses no risk of damage to property.