Abstract Kennecott Minerals Company (KMC) operates a 15,000-ton-per-day open-pit gold mine located approximately 5 miles east of the town of Ridgeway, and 25 miles north of Columbia, South Carolina (Figure 1). The Ridgeway gold mine is one of four gold mines which were put in production in South Carolina in the 1980’s. It is currently the only operating gold mine in the Eastern United States. The Ridgeway mine produces gold bullion from two bulk-mineable, open-pit deposits located one mile apart. Low-grade oxide and sulfide ore produced from the siliceous deposits is blasted and hauled to a central mill complex. Ore is milled to minus 200 mesh, and gold is extracted by a carbon-in-pulp, electrowinning process. The mine operates 24 hours a day, and employs over 100 people. The mine began producing gold in December 1988 and total developed in order to achieve an ultimate production goal of 1.5 million ounces of gold bullion by the year 2000. The North Pit is 2,000 feet long, 1,400 feet wide, and 320 feet deep. The South Pit is 2,600 feet long, 1,500 feet wide, and 360 feet deep. The South Pit is being mined at full scale, and is expected to be mined out by June 1996. Activity in the North Pit is currently focused on the stripping of oxide ore and waste at the 420-440 level along the northern half of the pit. Future development plans for the North Pit include deepening the pit from the 120 elevation to -40 elevation. This paper