Pit water, mine water or mining water is

water Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...

that collects in a mine and which has to be brought to the surface by

water management Water resources are natural resources of water that are potentially useful for humans, for example as a source of drinking water supply or irrigation water. These resources can be either freshwater from natural sources, or water produced artificia ...

methods in order to enable the mine to continue working.

Origin

Although all water that enters pit workings originates from

atmospheric precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls from clouds due to gravitational pull. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, rain and snow mixed ("sleet" in Commonwealth ...

, the miner distinguishes between

surface water Surface water is water located on top of land, forming terrestrial (surrounding by land on all sides) waterbodies, and may also be referred to as ''blue water'', opposed to the seawater and waterbodies like the ocean. The vast majority of surfac ...

and

groundwater Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and Pore space in soil, soil pore spaces and in the fractures of stratum, rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available fresh water in the world is groundwater. A unit ...

. Surface water enters the pit through openings in the mine at the surface of the ground, such as tunnel portals or shaft entrances. During heavy rain, water seeps into the earth and forms ground water when it meets layers of impervious rock. Pit water is mainly

interstitial water {{Short pages monitor