Overview
Learn the basic skills to implement best practices for managing water on mining sites.
You’ll focus on GIS, hydrology and flood risk, and groundwater – essential knowledge that will form the basis for further studies in managing mine water. You'll engage with practical examples, analyse mine site data and identify the tasks that need to be undertaken.
This is part 1 of 3 courses on managing water within the Mine Site Environmental Management Program.
Who should attend
Junior environmental personnel.
Entry requirements
An ArcGIS Pro license is required. If it is not available through employment conditions, a personal ArcGIS Pro licence can be purchased on Esri’s website.
What you'll learn
- How to prepare and analyse GIS data effectively.
- Interpret and understand the water cycle, rainfall runoff, and hydrological modelling as it applies to mine sites.
- Understand and define the core aspects of hydrogeology, including groundwater modelling.
Time commitment
This is an online course that will require roughly 50 hours to complete.
- 47 hours of online content and study
- 3 hours of scheduled webinars
- Over 12 weeks.
Course curriculum
The facilitator for this module is Dr Pascal Bolz. This module is divided into 4 sections plus an assessment:
- Data Preparation 1 – 101 of digital elevation data. Brief overview of elevation data including acquisition technology and basic data characteristics, pros and cons of different elevation data formats.
- Data Preparation 2 – Introduction of concepts for hydrological optimisation problems and procedures for elevation data.
- Hydro Modelling 1 – Concepts and procedures of stream flow modelling in GIS.
- Hydro Modelling 2 – Catchment delineation, concepts and procedures.
- Assessment – Submit the site’s catchment based on Digital Elevation Model Report and maps.
The facilitators for this module are Professor Neil McIntyre and Dr Liliana Pagliero. This module is divided into 5 sections plus an assessment:
- Basic hydrology – an overview of the water cycle, catchments, water balance, and the hydrograph.
- Measurements – water levels, stream flows, evaporation, snow, and data quality control with a focus on surface water.
- Design events and frequency analysis – design rainfall, rainfall depth-duration curves, areal reduction factors, temporal profiles, probable maximum precipitation, and using continuous rainfall.
- Rainfall-runoff models – covering the main types of models, with a focus on the Australian Water Balance Model (AWBM), the RORB model, and snow.
- Flood mapping – flood risk management process, hydraulic models, how to write a scope of works and reporting, and providing guidance materials.
- Assessment – Write a Scope of Works for a flood study of the site.
The facilitator for this module is Louisa Rochford. This module is divided into four sections plus an assessment:
- Groundwater basics – overview of groundwater and aquifers.
- Aquifer water balance – key components of an aquifer water balance, including recharge and discharge processes.
- Quantitative hydrogeology – hydraulic head, Darcy's Law, hydraulic conductivity, and solute transport.
- Groundwater field investigations – drilling, groundwater monitoring, hydraulic testing, and other field investigation methods.
- Groundwater modelling – conceptual models, numerical models, and the Australian Groundwater Modelling Guidelines.
- Assessment – Calculate recharge for a scenario mine and summarise the key components of a numerical groundwater flow model.
Assessment
This course has 3 assessments – one for each key subject area.
Certification and accreditation
Students who successfully complete the course will receive a Certificate of Completion to verify their skills and achievements.
Facilitators
Cost
| Applicant | Price |
|---|---|
| Individual domestic ex. GST | A$3,000 |
| Individual international (GST not payable) | A$3,000 |
Please see the Terms and Conditions – UQ Pay (PDF, 123.12 KB).
GST is excluded from the cost
Payment optionsWe accept credit cards (Visa/MasterCard) for payment, including corporate credit cards. If you do not have access to a card, please contact our team at education@smi.uq.edu.au to discuss your options.
Related courses
This course is part of the Mine Site Environmental Management Program suite. There are 3 courses within this suite – see the other related courses below:
- Mine Site Environmental Management Program 2 – Mine Water Systems
- Mine Site Environmental Management Program 3 – Soil, Erosion and Sediment Control, Tailings and Residue
Contact
Sustainable Minerals Institute
For more professional development options, visit the Sustainable Minerals Institute website.