Mining Engineering
Mining Operations
Water Management in Mining Operations
Managing mine water as a balance: what comes in, what is used, what is stored, and what has to leave.
- Duration
- 5 days
- Contact hours
- 30
- Level
- Intermediate
- Fee from
- On enquiry
Overview
Mines are either short of water or drowning in it, often in the same year. Managing it properly starts with a site water balance accounting for every input and output, and most operations do not have one that closes. This week builds that balance, then works through dewatering, storage, treatment and discharge, and the quality obligations attached to each. Climate variability is treated as a design condition rather than an excuse.
Who should attend
Environmental and water managers, mine planners and hydrogeologists, process engineers handling water circuits, and compliance staff.
What you will be able to do
- Build a site water balance that closes.
- Plan dewatering for pit or underground operations.
- Specify storage and containment for the design event.
- Select treatment proportionate to the discharge obligation.
- Manage water quality and reporting against licence conditions.
How it is taught
Short input, then work, across 5 days of roughly 6 teaching hours each. Exercises run on situations delegates bring rather than on a case study written for a different organisation. Cohorts are capped so that everybody is asked something.
Available as classroom, live online, in house.
Programme outline
Day 1
The balance
- Inputs: rainfall, runoff, groundwater and imports
- Uses: process, dust suppression and potable
- Losses, storage change, and closing the balance
Day 2
Dewatering
- Pit and underground dewatering
- Pumping systems and reliability
- Groundwater interception and its consequences
Day 3
Storage
- Dams, ponds and design storm events
- Freeboard, spillways and overtopping
- Seepage and liners
Day 4
Quality and treatment
- Contaminants of concern by operation type
- Treatment options and running cost
- Reuse and recycling
Day 5
Compliance and climate
- Discharge limits and monitoring
- Drought and flood planning
- Reporting, and community concern about water
What you leave with
- A site water balance for one operation.
- A storage and containment adequacy check.
- A water quality monitoring and reporting plan.
Dates and fees
| Dates | Location | Format | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 23 to 27 November 2026 | Nairobi, Kenya | Classroom | US$1,500 |
| 30 November 2026 to 4 December 2026 | Gaborone, Botswana | Classroom | R15,000 |
| 7 to 11 December 2026 | Dubai, United Arab Emirates | Classroom | US$1,500 |
| 14 to 18 December 2026 | Lagos, Nigeria | Classroom | US$1,500 |
Fees are per delegate and cover tuition, all programme materials and the certificate. Travel, accommodation and visas are arranged by the delegate. Registration closes two weeks before a programme starts.
Certificate
A GATI certificate recording what was attended, issued after the programme has run and attendance has been taken. Attending at least 80 per cent of the days earns a certificate of completion; attending less earns a certificate of attendance stating exactly what was attended. Every certificate carries a code that anybody can check against GATI's own record.
It records participation. and GATI does not claim one it does not hold.