The present research aims to address the drinking water crisis in the Mahan River catchment area resulting from the disruption of groundwater availability due to extensive coal mining. The study uses GIS-based Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) to map the groundwater potential of the area by analysing several factors that affect groundwater availability, including rainfall, water depth, geomorphology, geology, soil, land-cover/land-use, and topographic characteristics derived from DEM. The groundwater potential map created using the MCDA technique classified the area into low, moderate, and high groundwater potential zones. The map was validated and verified using water table depth and electrical conductivity values available in the region, indicating that it can be used to identify groundwater recharging sites. The study’s results show that about 30% of the area has high groundwater potential, and more than 45% of the area has moderate groundwater potential. The information derived from the study can be used for sustainable management and proper planning of groundwater resources in the Mahan River catchment area. Overall, the study presents a useful approach to address the groundwater depletion problem resulting from coal mining activities in the Mahan River catchment area.

It is widely known and accepted that the global climate is changing with unprecedented speed. Climate models project increasing temperatures and changes in precipitation regimes which will alter the frequency, magnitude, and geographic distribution of climate-related hazards including flood, drought and heat waves. In the mining industry, climate change impacts are an area of research around the world, mostly in relation to the mining industry in Australia and Canada, where mining policies and mitigation actions based on the results of this research were adopted and applied. In Poland, there is still a lack of research on how climate change, and especially extreme weather events, impacts mining activity. This impact may be of particular importance in Poland, where the mining industry is in the process of intensive transition. The paper presents an overview of hazardous events in mining in Poland that were related to extreme weather phenomena. The needs and recommended actions in the scope of mitigating the impact of future climate change on mining in all stages of its functioning were also indicated. The presented analyses and conclusions are the results of the first activities in the TEXMIN project: The impact of extreme weather events on mining activities, identifying the most important factors resulting from climate change impact on mining.