Bezpieczeństwo Pracy i Ochrona Środowiska w Górnictwie Number 03/2024

The article refers to the institution of statute of limitations on claims made in connection with the operation of mining plants. Attention was brought to the fact that if it is conducted in accordance with the Geological and Mining Law (hereinafter: GML), the legal bases for determining the damage and the indemnification liability are regulated by the Act, otherwise - they are established by the Civil Code. The provisions of the Civil Code apply when damage caused by a mining company is not connected to the operations of the mining plant. In contrast, when these two issues are tied, the GML does not regulate certain issues. The specific standards of GML were presented against the solutions proposed by the Civil Code. Lapse of the statute of limitations on a financial claim entitles the debtor to legally refuse to satisfy the creditor. According to the GML, any claims made against mining companies expire within 5 years from becoming aware of the damage. However, if this damage was done as a result of activities that go against the GML, general rules stated in the Civil Code are applied (expiry within 3 years, but no more than 10 years from the occurrence of the damage). Attention was also brought to the specific nature of mining damages, in the context of their private insurance. Because mining damages are the likely outcome of legal mining activities, they are a “nuisance” for insurance companies offering civil liability coverage, since the cause of possible damage can barely fit into the category of random event. The article also emphasizes the importance of amicable dispute resolution, due to the regulations of the GML. The author suggests a further specification of Article 149 of the GML, the resolution of practical issues concerning serial damages, and the introduction of mediation into the GML, as a method of amicable resolution of disputes concerning mining damages.

In 2015, the “Budryk” mine completed the deepening of peripheral shaft no. VI and commenced the drilling of shaft excavations, which increased its demand for explosives. Initially, the mine organized a movable explosive storage in a Fort Transit II. With time, it could not keep up with the demand, due to regulatory restrictions. The construction of a permanent, underground explosive storage would not be practicable. Therefore, the possibility of constructing an above-ground explosive storage was analyzed. In order to fulfill the legal requirements for its location, and reduce its distances to other facilities, it was necessary to fulfill 34 additional requirements that guarantee general safety, including for explosive storage racks and the design of the bund surrounding the above-ground explosive storage. A concrete partition between individual explosive boxes was constructed on the racks, in order to contain any possible detonations in between them. According to research, the bund surrounding the explosive storage building should consist of a retaining wall and an embankment (a clay scarp) of ca. 7 m in height above the floor, with a roof reaching at least 4 m in its highest point. In combination with a light roof design for the explosive storage, this will direct the shockwave up, limiting its possible destruction zone. This above-ground explosive storage is an innovative engineering structure serving the underground Silesian mining plants. During its operation in 2021, no undesirable events were recorded, and its construction had positive impact on the management of explosives at KWK “Budryk”. Other, beneficial aspects of its construction compared to permanent, underground explosive storages include, among others, four times shorter construction and several times more beneficial economics, including thanks to the possibility of retaining the storage facility until the very closure of the mine, compared to the liquidation of an extraction level.