Peculiarities of drilling and blasting in underground small-scale mines

Abstract Artisanal and Small-scale Mining (ASM) is a prominent activity in the extractive industry: considering only gold, it produces about 20% of the world market supply. Despite this fact, ASM is generally associated with the negative aspects of its environ mental impact, and operational research is generally neglected. This article empha sizes the peculiarity of the drilling and blasting systems of small underground mines in selected South American Countries. Such Countries, while having large mineral deposits and well recognized large-scale mining activities, at the same time still pres e...