One of the largest coal bases in the world is the Kuznetsk coal basin. It is located in the southern part of Siberia. Its area reaches seventy thousand square kilometers and captures the Altai Territory, Kemerovo, Novosibirsk Regions. This geographical location is considered disadvantageous, since the main areas consuming coal are quite far away.
The Kuznetsk basin was opened in 1721 by serf miners. Later, in 1851, the Bochatsky Mine was founded, and in 1897 coal mining began in the Anzhero-Sudzhensky district.
Under the leadership of L.I. Lutugin in 1914 began research and geological survey of the basin. As a result, the first geological map of this area was published and a decision was made to create the Ural-Kuznetsk Metallurgical Plant.
The coal basin consists of 260 layers of various thicknesses: 1.3-3.5 m. They are distributed unevenly - from 9 to 30 m.
In addition to coal, the Kuznetsk coal basin contains deposits of peat, iron ore, limestone, building materials, refractory clays, ornamental stones, and so on. Today Kuzbass is one of the most significant industrial regions of Russia. The main industries in the region are: mining and processing of iron ores, coal and non-metallic raw materials for the construction industry and metallurgy.
The development of deposits is carried out by the combines Kemerovougol, Yuzhkuzbassugol, Kuzbassugol, Prokopyevskugol at 90 mines and open pits. The average depth of the mines is 200 meters, and the maximum is 500 meters.
In terms of production, the Kuznetsk coal basin is in second place after the Donbass. However, it largely surpasses it in economic and mining indicators.
The main coal mining is carried out in the central and southern regions: Belovsky, Prokopyevsk-Kiselevsky, Tomusinsky, Leninsk-Kuznetsk. The mining process is carried out underground, hydraulic and open ways. Open mining accounts for 30%, and hydraulic production - 5%. Three hydraulic shafts are successfully operated. An underground coal gasification station operates in the Prokopyevsk-Kiselevsky district.
The Kuznetsk coal basin has 25 modern coal processing plants, 365 combines designed for cleaning, 180 mechanized complexes, 200 combines, 1731 electric locomotives, 12,000 belt and scraper conveyors, 450 loading machines. The main technological production processes for the extraction and transportation of coal are mechanized. As auxiliary equipment, 80 electric locomotives, 448 excavators, 300 bulldozers, 900 dump cars, hundreds of drilling rigs, cranes and heavy vehicles are used. All of them are managed by skilled workers.
The largest modern mechanized enterprises - Yubileinoe in Novokuznetsk, them. V.I. Lenin in Mezhdurechensk and others. Every day they produce about ten thousand tons of coal. In the future it is planned to increase this figure.
In addition to the coal industry, metallurgy is well developed in the Kuznetsk basin (West Siberian plant, Novokuznetsk aluminum plant, Kuznetsk metallurgical plant, Belovsky zinc plant), mechanical engineering, and the chemical industry.
Kuznetsk coal basin has a continental climate. Here, air temperature, the intensity of solar radiation and the amount of precipitation often and sharply change.
In the direction from south to north, the territory of the coal basin is crossed by the Tom River. It is the main source of technical and drinking water supply to enterprises.
The territory of the Kuznetsk basin is constantly exposed to in connection with the development of industry. As a result, anthropogenic transformations of landscapes occur.