ABSTRACT
In the German deep mined hard coal industry some 52 mt of salable coal were produced from 118 faces in 1994. The average working depth ranged around 950 m with the deepest workings at a depth of 1,500 m. The high extraction density and the great working depth result in high rock pressures. This chapter describes the effects of the rock pressure on roadways and faces, as well as the German strata control system. One of the major prerequisites for the establishment of a strata control system is the creation of a wide data base building upon underground observations and measurements. The chapter discusses the model of subsidence calculation. In order to be able to perform a subsidence prediction calculation, the required data must be supplied. Changes to the production faces, e.g. to the chronological sequence, can be made in order to minimize the predicted subsidence.
