# Australian Mine - Passive GNSS Monitoring ![Kurloo Logo Lines 1](https://www.kurloogeomonitoring.com/wp-content/uploads/Kurloo-Logo-Lines-1.svg) MINING CASE STUDY - REHABILITATION, GEOTECHNICAL & DUMP MONITORING ## Project Overview An Australian mine required a reliable, long-term monitoring approach to track landform settlement across progressive rehabilitation areas, geotechnical hazards, and water-impacted dumps. Traditional periodic manual surveys and 5 m contour models limited temporal consistency and masked subtle deformation trends. To strengthen environmental compliance and improve early risk detection, the site implemented Kurloo’s passive GNSS monitoring system. ## The Challenge The mine needed consistent, repeatable settlement data across: - Newly rehabilitated areas (2 months old) - Legacy rehabilitation (>10 years old) - Dumps overlying water bodies - Known geotechnical hazards Manual surveying created several limitations: - Infrequent data (monthly to six-monthly) - Point picking repeatability issues - Labour-intensive reporting - Limited ability to detect <20 mm/month shifts - Vulnerability to site power and network outages As the survey team noted: “Rather than going out and picking a point that we hope is the same point six months later…” The mine required a passive, long-baseline GNSS solution capable of millimetre-to-centimetre scale stability over time. ## The Kurloo Solution The Australian mine deployed a network of Kurloo GNSS monitors supported by onsite base stations. The system was selected because it is: - Passive and “set-and-forget” — no cabling or site power required - Based on long (4–6 hour) observation sessions for high-precision processing - Solar powered with SD card redundancy - Independent of mine network systems - Supported by geodesists and customer success teams Kurloo now supports: - Long-term rehabilitation settlement monitoring - 12-month geotechnical hazard stability tracking - Monitoring dump behaviour during large-scale water body dewatering ## The Results Early risk detection, efficiency, and compliance confidence Kurloo transformed how the Australian mine monitors rehabilitation landforms, geotechnical hazards, and water-impacted dumps. Up to 95% Earlier risk detection with alerts Anomalies are flagged before cracks or visible distress are discovered onsite. 80–90% Reduction in survey labour hours Automated monitoring removed the need for repeated site traverses and manual point picking. 10–180x Increase in monitoring frequency Daily GNSS observations replaced monthly–six monthly manual surveys. ZERO Data gaps Solar-powered units with SD card redundancy ensure uninterrupted monitoring. Long-baseline 4–6 hour GNSS observations deliver stable mm–cm trend reliability, enabling detection of <20mm/month shifts across rehabilitation landforms. "It works, it’s reliable, it does what it says it’s going to do… We couldn’t be happier." **Mine Surveyor**, Australian Mine ## Operational & Compliance Benefits Kurloo enabled: - Stronger regulator confidence through repeatable, defensible monitoring - Automated weekly, monthly, and half-yearly reporting - Reduced reliance on scarce survey resources - Early anomaly alerts before visible cracking - Scalable monitoring for future infrastructure, including a planned 1.5 km dam wall installation ## Outcome Kurloo now forms an integral part of the Australian mine’s environmental and geotechnical monitoring program — delivering earlier risk identification, improved compliance confidence, and measurable operational efficiency. ## Download the Full Technical Case Study Access detailed deployment configuration, long-baseline GNSS processing methodology, before-and-after performance comparison, and compliance reporting framework. Download Full Technical Report