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Mr. Jim Mattern <br />March 19, 2007 <br />Page I S <br />7. Gd-2 Cut Failure Conditions: Reduce the strength of bedding planes in the mudstone <br />layer above main L-Seam to residual strengths to represent time-dependent softening. <br />This assumption is based on observations of shallow sandstone on the northeast side of <br />the landslide block that were so weak that they formed remnant `crumbly spires.' The <br />rock mass strength of the G-Dip floor material was reduce above the mudstone layer <br />above main L-Seam to residual strengths to represent time-dependent softening due to the <br />landslide block wanting to move in that direction allow the floor to yield. This <br />assumption is consistent with observations of the pit floor which appeared to have heaved <br />or buckled. ~ Compute equilibrium condition. Geometry is same as shown in Figure 7. <br />G-Pit Ground Water Conditions <br />Not much information is known about groundwater conditions immediately prior to the <br />landslide event. Figure 8, which was discussed in the landslide trip report, shows that <br />significant rain fell prior to both the Gs-6 Cut failure of September 2005 and the Gd-2 Box Cut <br />landslide failure of October 2006. There were three major storm events (>0.25 inches) the week <br />before the landslide and one after the initial movement. Groundwater piezometer data suggests <br />that head conditions can vary widely, and this is thought the result of open fractures in sandstone <br />layers and lack of fractures in mudstone layers. Several simplifying assumptions were made in <br />the model to represent worst-case, homogeneous-flow conditions. <br />Water surface in the model is assumed 10 ft below ground, parallel to bedding. The <br />mined pits and spoils were assumed fully drained due to their high porosity. This assumption is <br />based on observations that downdip of the toe pile the drainage ravine had a constant stream of <br />water of about 7-8 gpm shortly after the event. The rock below the phreatic surface was <br />assumed fully saturated and its saturated density based on an average porosity of 0.05. <br />Groundwater flow is not simulated; rather pore water pressures were used only to compute <br />effective stresses. Four water tables were defined in Table 3 to approximate being parallel to the <br />ground surface. <br />The water table planes defming the water pressure gradient in the model are depicted in <br />Figure 9, along with contours of computed pore pressures. A close-up view of pore pressure <br />contours in the vicinity of Gs-6 Cut highwall is shown in Figure 10. The blasted <br />M-Q Interburden rock of Cut 6 is assumed drained and is assumed to have no pore water <br />pressure. Contours of assumed pore water pressures are shown in Figure 11 for only the weak <br />mudstone layer above the main L-Seam since this is the weakest layer in the sequence and is <br />thought to contain the slip plane. <br />G-STRIKE PIT CALIBRATION ANALYSIS <br />The first part of the analysis was to calibrate the material properties to the localized <br />failure that occurred in the Gs-6 Cut highwall in September 2005. Using the best estimated <br />strength properties for the saturated rock mass (referred to as peak strength conditions), <br />displacement contours, shown in Figure 12, indicate the largest movements occur near the <br />Agapito Associates, Inc. <br />