The Study of Potash Mining Risk Possibility in Thailand

Abstract

Risk possibility studies of potash mining in Thailand become necessary because potash will soon be widely mined in Northeast Thailand. This paper reviews previous comparative documents to learn the former risk impacts from potash mining in many other places of the world, such as Carlsbad in New Mexico State, USA, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in Canada and many places in Europe, such as Germany, Poland, Ukraine and in Russia, where the potash mines were first operated more than a hundred years ago. The reason for this comparative study is that the exploitation of potash resource in Thailand is in the initial stage following the Department of Mineral Resources revelation of a huge and good reserve of potash deposits and the publication of the details in 1973.

There are many types of potash mining, but one of the most popular operations is an underground mine that differs from a tunnel mine. Normally, the underground potash is more likely to be developed as a mine since the potash minerals usually occur as layers underneath the plain of a basin. The underground mine can be more advantageous than solution mining because the operations can be controlled by humans.

Although the underground mine seems to be an appropriate method for the potash minerals, some risks or hazards remain and the environmental impacts are little known. The hazards from potash mining in this world may occur from flooding in the underground mine, explosions from gases in the potash minerals or intrusion of igneous rocks in the potash strata or an earthquake collapses the mine. These phenomena may occur this time in Thailand if insufficient attention is paid to the possible risks by appropriate individuals or organizations. The best practice knowledge of risk and prevention should therefore be applied and executed.