Abstract
This article describes the development and updating of the Russian regulations for the stability of open pit slopes and mine waste dumps in Russia. Russian and international experience was considered and adapted to meet Russian legal structures.
The Russian Rules for the Stability of Benches and Slopes of Open Pits and Waste Dumps (Rules) are based on the outcome of the Large Open Pit (LOP) project and resulted in the Guidelines for Open Pit Slope Design (2010) edited by John Read and Peter Stacey.
Many of the largest Russian mining companies were involved in the financing of this program and a number of universities, consulting and scientific organisations were engaged in the development of the Rules.
The purpose of updating the Rules is to take advantage of current knowledge and software. The new Russian Rules summarise a wide range of requirements for geological and hydrogeological studies, stability analysis, monitoring methods, estimation and analysis of geotechnical risks, management of pit slope stability by developing special measures to reduce risks. Conditions for both strong and weak rock types are considered.
Depending on the complexity and the stage of a mining project, specific types of studies, their minimum requirements and the analysis methods are specified in the Rules.
A key point for international readers to bear in mind is that countries using the civil code legal system (such as Russia) often require guidelines to be defined in more detail than would be typical in countries using the common law legal system (such as Australia, Canada, South Africa, and other English-speaking countries).
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