Sub Topic

Level: Introductory 

Facilitator: Vincent Le Borgne, GKM Consultants 

Deploying a comprehensive monitoring plan is becoming a common requirement for mine operators. They must show regulatory bodies that they are properly managing ground and surface water, preventing leeching and using state-of-the-art reporting systems. A well-managed monitoring plan is critical to ensure long-term compliance with environmental regulations during operations and post-closure. This short course will provide an overview of each part of a monitoring system, including instruments choice and installation, data collection methods, software technologies and best practices for designing monitoring plans. The first part of the course will focus on piezometers, water quality sondes and other ground and water quality sensors, sharing experience from installations in mines across Canada. The second part will provide hands-on training with hardware to connect instruments to data loggers, collect readings and convert the raw data to engineering units. The third part of the course will focus on designing the monitoring plan and tying up data collection in automated reported software. 

Short Course Objectives: 

To provide participants with an overview of the following:  

• In-ground instruments such as piezometers, water quality sondes and weir monitors  

• Data logger technology  

• Best practices in designing monitoring plans  

• Software requirements and available software packages used for real-time monitoring 

Target Audience:  

Engineers and project managers working on tailings storage facilities and environmental management. 

About the instructor:  

Working as a Research & Development Manager for GKM Consultants since 2015, Vincent Le Borgne has developed an expertise on vibrating wire geotechnical instruments, noise and vibration monitoring, data visualization platforms, inclinometers, and data logger control and programming. He has worked on the design and implementation of monitoring systems for large mines such as Minerai de Fer Quebec and the Rio Tinto Vaudreuil plant. He has also worked on structural health monitoring projects for existing infrastructure such as the Jacques Cartier Bridge and for major infrastructure construction projects. He has published papers pertaining to instrumentation and has offered training and classes to professionals and university students in Québec and Ontario. He has hosted the following short courses: - Yearly: guest instructor for the Experiment Methods graduate course at École de Technologie Supérieure under the direction of Professor François Duhaime. - 2018: The 5th IcGSM (International Course on Geotechnical and Structural Monitoring). - 2020: GeoVirtual 2020. Instrumentation and monitoring for oil and gas industry and in mine tailings - 2021: GeoNiagara 2021. Introduction to in-ground instrumentation and INSAR-based geotechnical monitoring - 2022: 3-day course in collaboration with Rockeng on monitoring and instrumentation for underground mining for NEXA Resources.