The Island Gold deposit is accessed via a single decline from surface down to the 425 Level, at which point multiple ramps are utilized to access the main IG, IG West, Extension and East zones. These ramps are also connected at numerous points throughout the mine allowing for easy travel between mining zones.
The LOM plan includes the addition of a mine shaft which will be constructed between 2021 and 2025. Once commissioned, the shaft will be utilized to hoist ore and waste from the 1305 Level to surface. Additionally, the shaft will used to transport personnel and materials to any of the three shaft stations. From the shaft collar location ore and waste will be trucked to either the mill or the surface waste stockpile.
Level accesses are typically developed at 20 m intervals (floor to floor) and are designed south of internal ramps providing access to the footwall of the deposit. Once the ore is reached, sills are developed along the ore contact, with their direction controlled by geology. Sill development is used as a drilling, mucking and backfilling platform for stope extraction. On some levels, additional footwall and cross-cut development is required when the width of the mineralization exceeds 10 metres.
The mining method for a particular stope is selected based on a variety of factors such as overall geometry of the mineralization, width of the ore zone, local stresses, mapping and geotechnical data, spatial location of the stope, and ........
