Another Sad Day (Mining).

[catfan 14,793]

It had to happen sooner or later.

http://www.nottinghampost.com/Thoresby-Colliery-close-July-loss-600-jobs/story-26514529-detail/story.html

[Bubblewrap 3,815]

A sad end to coal mining in Nottinghamshire and almost an end to deep mined coal in the U.K.

I was going to make a political point but thought better of it

[Ayupmeducks 1,730]

Coals price is around $US47 a tonne, UK pits could never produce coal at that price. High production pits around the world produce 48,000 tonnes per day with minimum manpower.

Even if Thatcher's government hadn't run down the coal industry, conditions and costs surely would have done so.

In 1984 I worked at a pit that sold it's coal to a power station at $A13 a tonne delivered, and we still made a profit with a little over 340 total workers, and that included office staff. Production was on three shfts a day, five days a week. Shifts were seven hours over lapped. Night shift carried out maintenance once product had ceased at 1-00am. One production face, two developments, 48,000 tonnes per week total.

Same pit was producing 2.5M tonnes annually up until recently from one face, with less than 300 workers total. It's in care and maintenance due to low world coal prices.

Not even Daw Mill when it was producing could beat those figures, and they worked a very thick seam.

[Ayupmeducks 1,730]

This is what UK Coal was up against.

[Ayupmeducks 1,730]

This was the video I meant to post.

[NewBasfordlad 3,599]

Part of our history gone yet again.

Yet our politicians endorse and push fracking (I am in favour) telling us we should not be dependant on foreign gas supplies, but with the amount of coal burnt in our power stations we can rely on foreign imports of coal.......................makes no sense to me.

[colly0410 1,181]

Economics init... Remember reading somewhere (probably Ayups mining site) that most of the easily/cheaply mined coal in the UK has already been mined & most of the remaining coal seams are thin &/or deep, low quality or highly faulted. The only coal that can be economically worked is shallow seams by the opencast method, although the locals don't like it. When I hear of some of the very thick seams in Australia, USA, China ect then I understand why we can't compete... A system that fascinates me is 'longwall top coal caving' very clever me thinks...

[Ayupmeducks 1,730]

Neat method Steve, but just think of the mess left behind on the surface from a 20 foot plus thick seam!! Not to mention an 800 metre long face, nice big trench above after a few weeks. There's some pretty shocking videos on Youtube of thick seam longwall face subsidence.

Many years back, one of the fellers I worked with at Clifton, told me to take a look at the field between the "Ponderosa pub" and the river when crossing Clfton Bridge. Clear outline of two longwall faces nearly 1000 below. And that was only about 48 inches taken!! Imagine a 14 foot take!!!

I worked in 14 foot faces, at my first pit we left 17 feet of roof, as it was poor quality coal, and a few feet of floor coal, we cut around 10 to 12 feet, so that seam was over 30 feet thick!

[Bilbraborn 1,594]

Coal is like everything else. If no-one buys it, it will not sell and the industry disappears. And as for foreign coal? We all buy as cheaply as we can. Besides, those luverly people in Europe want all coal fired power stations shut down.

As the price of gas and electric rises, more people won't be able to afford it. I suppose it is a sure way of reducing the population.

[catfan 14,793]

Also a sure way to keep the working classes in their place by allowing the power companies to charge extortionate prices for fuel. Some working people go to work to just pay bills.

Most power companies are foreign owned now anyway.

[Ayupmeducks 1,730]

Coals at it's lowest price in many years, there's a glut from over production and a bad economy, hence many big miners have put their mines on care and maintenance until things pick up.

[colly0410 1,181]

# 8 Ayup

On our house survey it says there are 7 coal seams worked under our house. We've got raft foundations so no damage to house, but the gardens are all over the place & the drains keep blocking up as there is not enough fall on them. The drain rods were a good investment.

I was gobsmacked when I first saw the Black Shale seam headings down Hucknall pit: Floor to roof coal with a dirt band just over half way up. They only took the bottom 6/7 feet as the other stuff was low quality, still caught fire though when it collapsed in the gob, there were breeze blocks & stemming stacked at end of each gate to erect stoppings in a hurry..

[Bilbraborn 1,594]

I can remember houses on Western Boulevard tipping forward.

[Ayupmeducks 1,730]

Amazing the mess on the surface when they take out 20 plus feet of coal....LOL

By "raft" I presume you mean reinforced concrete slab?? If so, eventually it will crack.

Have you checked your walls with a "level" recently??

[Bilbraborn 1,594]

Then there was the day the bowling green at Raleigh social club dropped.