Mobile Sampling Of Dust Emissions From Unsealed Roads

Dust from unsealed roads has the potential to have a detrimental impact on local ambient air quality, create a road safety hazard by reducing visibility and result in higher vehicle operating costs, due to dust penetrating the engine and other moving components resulting in increased rates of wear.

An understanding of dust emissions from haul roads - and the level of control that can be achieved - is therefore critically important for operational purposes, as well as for the Environmental Assessment of proposed mining activities. There are also recent regulatory requirements in the form of Pollution Reduction Programs (introduced in 2013) by the NSW Environment Protection Authority's as part of the Dust Stop Pollution Reduction Program. One aspect of this is the requirement to demonstrate that 80% control of dust is being achieved on active haul roads.

The objectives of stage 1 of the project were to:

· Determine the effectiveness of suppressants at controlling dust emissions from unsealed roads at coal mine sites, and under different conditions;

· Provide a tool to help mine operators select the most appropriate dust suppressants; and

· Develop an industry methodology for assessing the actual in situ effectiveness of dust suppressants.

The objectives of Stage 2 were to:

· Use the mobile monitoring approach developed in Stage 1 of the project to determine the temporal and spatial distribution of dust emissions under normal operational conditions at a range of mine sites / haul road constructions; and

· Develop a practical tool and/or guidance to help mine operators evaluate and optimise their haul road dust control.

THE FINAL STAGE ONE AND TWO REPORTS ARE COMBINED AND ARE AVAILABLE FROM THE ACARP WEB SITE