All open pit porphyry mines in BC use total stations and prisms for pit slope monitoring.
Several mines complement the total station monitoring with other techniques
such as radar and extensometers. It is noted that no Cu–Mo mines in BC use lidar to
routinely monitor their pit walls. Among the six open pit mines surveyed, only HVC
uses fully automated total station monitoring technology. As the other open pits become
larger and deeper, the increased time required to survey larger numbers of prisms will
likely cause a shift in monitoring methods to robotic total stations with automated data
processing systems. This will allow deeper pits to monitor the slope more frequently
and at various times of the day to maintain productivity and safety, particularly as slope
instabilities develop. The automation system will have to be robust to withstand the
harsh mining environment and extreme weather conditions, and to provide timely
response to failures. Automated survey systems will also likely help remove potential
human errors, although there will still be some uncertainties regarding the survey data.