Abstract: The burden from a tow of breast-tied strings of barges is unloaded by first mooring the tow to an access platform. The hard ties are removed from a first and then remaining string of barges after they are pulled against the platform. The barges of each string are provided with forward and aft soft ties and soft ties are provided between the forward and aft ends of successive strings. The softly-tied barges are advanced along a floating slip by a barge haul below two serially-arranged excavators. The burden is unloaded in two layers from each barge with each excavator removing one layer while the barges normally pass in only one direction continuously through the slip. After unloading, the empty barges are moored at a fleeting area where a tow is again formed by hard tieing the barges together.

Abstract: A method of developing, mining and restoring a mining property having one or more mineral bearing rock seams is provided. Three-dimensional topographic control data, mineral bearing rock seam location data, water flow data, and overburden stratification and constituency data are collected and a topographic map of the mine property is prepared. An access road is located on the map to the mineral bearing rock seams and various environmental control facilities, topsoil storage areas and overburden disposal sites are identified and located on the map. Next, the mining operations are broken into sequential phases and placed on the topographic map. Mining of the seam material is then accomplished by sequential phases. After completing the first phase, each succeeding sequential phase is completed. During each succeeding sequential phase, a portion of the mine property in the preceeding phase is preferably restored.