Dear All,
This really is a 'tricky' subject, and has been the subject of debate in
certain quarters for a quite a long time. Part of the 'problem' lies with
those who would dread &/or hate to be called or termed quarrymen!!! Quarrymen
are actually very comfortable with their description, and, in general, are
more than happy to leave mining to those who wish to go underground!
Those quarrymen who work underground, slate very particularly, take pride in
their terminology and don't actually regard themselves as miners, who
sometimes I have heard said of by quarrymen "would have difficulty with the
job". They do not mean to be derogatory, it is simply that they have to
'read' the rock to get the least amount of wastage from the rock that is in
front of them, so to get the best recovery - obviously their wages depend on
effective production techniques and a great deal of skill & experience in
'reading rock'. Miners of course on the other hand must work the other way
round since they do not want dilution of the ore being extracted: they must
read the rock for safety purposes, and seek/calculate the route of the
orebody they follow through the rock (there is more to this obviously as I
know only too well). As to terminology, in the English Lake District
underground slate industry for example, an underground slate quarry is called
a "close-head" - other uses for this word have previously been proposed by
quarrymen!. Those who drive tunnels within the slate have always been known
as tunnellers! (no-one please start another job description debate out of
this one or all this will go on forever!!!!!!!).
On a very brief serious note:-
The day is not many decades away were most if not all metal mining will
change forever. Metals will eventually be pumped using biochemical/enzyme
technology; the concept is already born in experimentation, adulthood will
rapidly occur. (BRMoore quote 31/5/00)
For quite a lot of years I was always led to believe that a mines inspector
inspected mines, open-sky/cast/pits/holes in the ground are inspected by
inspectors qualified in both quarrying (IQE) & mining (IMM/IME) & come from
the HM M&Q Inspectorate under the M&Q Act & Regs. (in the UK anyway where the
best description (& procedures) comes from so far as far as I am concerned -
courtesy John Eyre), any company or any individual operating under or using
the procedures & attitude as described Evan Price should be shot, sand comes
from a sand pit, gravel came from a gravel pit, limestone comes from a
limestone quarry (or very occasionaly now a mine) & produces all sorts of
useful products, guano comes from big birds siting on big remote rocks,
potash & gypsum comes from mines but occasionally is quarried, marble &
granite is quarried - but I do know of a granite mine as it happens - slate
comes from a slate mine or a slate quarry if from a rather big indentation:
oil, water & brines and all other lovely things that need pumping to be
produced comes from wells: coal & metals come from mines or a few rather big
open holes, salt also comes from salt mines where bad men go, & a damn great
dent in the ground is a quarry, and a *%$£x# deep hole in the ground is a
mine!!!!!!
Love to All, Bernard (!!!!!)
sand pit gravel pit tunneles
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
|