2024 Underground Mining School

The 33rd edition of the Underground Mining School took place on February 26-28, 2024 in Krakow. It is a cyclic science and technology conference attended by practicing miners, representatives of companies associated with mining and scientists to exchange their views and solutions. For years, the event has been regarded as one of the most important meetings of engineers and scientists working in and for the underground mining industry.
Per tradition, the guests were welcomed by Jerzy Kicki, PhD, the chairman of the Organizing Committee of the 33rd Underground Mining School. Followed by him was Prof. Krzysztof Galos, the long-term director of the Mineral and Energy Economy Research Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences, promoted to the Minister of Climate and Environment and the Chief State Geologist in January. In this part of the session, the stage was also given to the President of the State Mining Authority, Adam Mirek, PhD Eng.

The three-day meeting divided into thematic sessions was devoted, among others, to: new techniques and technologies in underground mining, rock burst threat, aerology and mining geomatics, the idea of Industry 4.0, cybersecurity, reduction of methane emissions by Polish hard coal mines, decarbonization and energy storage.

An extensive report on safety in Polish mining was delivered by Alicja Stefaniak, the Director of the Department of Work Conditions and Training at the State Mining Authority. She stressed that, within the 12 months of 2023, the overall accident rate increased by 5.4% compared to 2022, i.e. from 2092 to 2205 accidents. Analyzing the causes of accidents, she concluded that they remain the same, and include: tripping, slipping or falling (33.5%), rock masses or lumps falling, rolling down or sliding down, rocks falling off the ceiling or walls, or rock bursts (16.9%), being hit with work tools or other objects (16.7%), objects or materials falling or rolling down (11.0%).

This was followed by a discussion panel titled “Improvement of safety in mining 2030”, which was attended by: Stanisław Trenczek, PhD, of GIG-PIB, Dariusz Prostański, PhD, the Director of the KOMAG Institute of Mining Technology, Piotr Buchwald, PhD, the President of Central Mine Rescue Station S.A., Andrzej Sączek, the Director of the HR Support Department at the Polish Mining Group, Prof. Antoni Tajduś, the Chairman of the Work Safety Committee at the State Mining Authority, and Adam Mirek, the President of the State Mining Authority.

During the panel titled “About coal: past, present and future”, Łukasz Iwański, the legal counsel at the Department of Law of the State Mining Authority, delivered a presentation titled “Changes to legal regulations concerning mining qualifications and trainings in mining, and their impact on the safety of mine personnel”.

The 33rd edition of the Underground Mining School also included issues revolving around artificial intelligence (AI). - Systems based on AI can monitor the working conditions, forecast machinery and equipment failures, detect safety threats in real time. The use of artificial intelligence at the stage of designing a digital deposit model and planning and scheduling production has been playing an increasingly important role in environmental management and sustainability - claimed the chairman of the Organizing Committee of the 2024 Underground Mining School.

The Underground Mining School was also the opportunity to learn the laureates of the 18th Mining Knowledge Challenge and the “Safe Mine” competition. KWK “ROW” Ruch Marcel (PGG) was named the safest mine in Poland. “Piast-Ziemowit” Ruch Piast (PGG) was ranked second, and third place was awarded ex aequo to Zakład Górniczy “Brzeszcze” belonging to Południowy Koncern Górniczy and the “Bolesław Śmiały” mine (PGG). Honorable mentions were awarded by Piotr Wojtacha, the Vice-President of the State Mining Authority. The laureates of the 18th edition of the Mining Knowledge Challenge were: Mateusz Pawlik, a student of the Silesian University of Technology, Karol Adamczyk, a representative of the AGH University of Krakow, and Hubert Deliga, a student of the Wrocław University of Science and Technology.