Dust Control Handbook for Industrial Minerals Mining and Processing

Figure 10.9. Self-tarping dump truck. The blue arrow indicates the directionof movement when tarping. Section A-A shows the recommended freeboard.Cab MaintenanceMaintaining equipment cabs in good operating condition also reduces operator exposure torespirable dust. It has been demonstrated that properly maintained cabs can attain dustreductions of 90 percent or more for drills [Chekan et al. 2003] and between 44 and 100percent for dozers, with the variations of the dust reductions for dozers attributable to reentrainmentof internal cab dust [Organiscak and Page 1999]. For haul truck cabs thatwere retrofitted with a filtration/pressure air conditioning system to produce positivepressure in the cab, it was demonstrated that properly maintained cabs can also reducerespirable dust exposures by 59 to 84 percent [Chekan and Colinet 2003; Chekan et al.2003]. It should be noted that the retrofitted trucks tested were old model (20-30 yearsold) haul trucks, and that newer haul trucks would have better cab integrity. The properuse and maintenance of cabs is discussed in more detail in Chapter 9—Operator Booths,Control Rooms, and Enclosed Cabs.STOCKPILES AND OPEN AREASStockpiles and open areas are common at surface mine sites. There are generally twotypes of stockpiles: long-term and short-term. A long-term stockpile undergoes nodisturbance to the pile over a long time period (several months or more). An examplewould be a topsoil stockpile where topsoil is stored until reclamation of the mine site is258 Haul Roads, Stockpiles, and Open Areas