An earthquake shakes regional Victoria after the explosion at Agnico Eagle's Fosterville gold mine

A mine-triggered earthquake following underground blasting activities at Agnico Eagle Mines' Fosterville gold development has rocked a group of towns in regional Victoria.

The 3.5 magnitude seismic event was felt by residents of North East Bendigo in the early hours of yesterday morning shortly after activities began.

The epicenter of the quake was reported to have occurred at 6.40am in Welsford State Forest, about 20 kilometers from Bendigo.

Production shooting

Fosterville Environment and Community Director Will Wettenhall said employees were working at the site when the latest earthquake occurred.

“It happened shortly after production launched,” he said.

Production burning – or blasting – is an essential part of the gold mining process and can create ground vibrations that may be felt by residents in surrounding areas.

Agnico tracks ground vibrations using a network of explosion monitors (or landlines) installed on the surface of its open and underground operations to maintain compliance with local limits.

“The mechanisms are similar to an earthquake, but linked to our mining activities,” Mr. Wettenhall explained.

No damage expected

Government agency Geoscience Australia received 37 reports from residents in and around the Bendigo area, as well as a further six from people in Melbourne's suburbs.

However, he did not expect any further tremors.

A spokesman for the center said: “The tremors associated with an earthquake of this size will be relatively short-lived, and are not expected to cause any damage.”

“Often, with earthquakes of this size, people say they hear these quakes more than they feel the shaking because they are so short.”

Common occurrence

This week's earthquake is the latest in a series of mine-triggered events in Fosterville – the second of its kind recorded in the past seven days, with another smaller 2.3 magnitude quake felt on November 1.

In July, the mine recorded a 2.5-magnitude earthquake at a depth of approximately one kilometer below the surface and 88 meters above the nearest underground mine.

80 underground workers were evacuated in April 2022, after Fosterville was struck by another 2.5-magnitude earthquake — the largest seismic event since monitoring technology was installed in 2019.

“We recognize that such events can be worrying for local residents, and we encourage those affected to contact us,” Agniko said at the time.

“We want to confirm [residents] We have strong security protocols in place.

Gold production

The 1.68 million ounce Fosterville mine began operations in 2005, initially producing gold from low-grade, near-surface mineralization.

The discovery of high-grade visible gold at depth led to the discovery of the Eagle Zone in 2015, while the high-grade Swan Zone was identified in 2016, ultimately turning Fosterville into one of the richest gold mines in the world.

Fosterville produced 277,694 ounces of gold in 2023, and is working to guide 2024 production of 210,000 ounces.

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