Ocena uciążliwości geologiczno-górniczych warunków eksploatacji węgla kamiennego i ich wpływ na koszty prac górniczych

This article presents the use of the multi-criterion Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method to assess the nuisance of geological and mining conditions to the longwall mining operations in selected coal mines in Poland. For this purpose, a methodology has been developed to calculate the exploitation nuisance index WUe in the context of coal mining costs in individual longwalls. Components of the nuisance index include four sub-indicators: natural hazard index (UZN), index describing the seam parameters (UPZ), index describing the technical parameters (UT), and environmental impact index (US). The analysis showed a strong correlation between the level of nuisance to the exploitation and the operating costs of these longwalls. The design of the longwall schedule should therefore also take into account the nuisance arising from the geological and mining conditions of the operations. Selective mining management allows optimizing the costs of mining in underground mines using the longwall system. This knowledge can also be used to reduce the total operating costs of mines as a result of abandoning the accessing and mining works in longwalls, and parts and entire areas of mines, which could be permanently unprofitable. Finally, it should be added that underground mines currently do not employ this type of solution, which even more emphasizes the need to popularize this approach.