Mining Paper 2 May/June 2015

Question 12

  1. (a)        What is a placer deposit?
    (b)        List six minerals that could be mined as placer deposits.
    (c)        Explain three methods used in surface mining.

Observation

The question was popular among the candidates. They performed well in the (a) and (b) components of the question. However, a good percentage of the candidates could not explain the methods used in surface mining. The expected answers included:

  • hydraulicking;
  • panning;
  • sluice box method;
  • rock method;
  • dredge method;