Humanity development is associated with higher spiritual and social behaviour and financial shape, which is an undeniable factor of urbanisation. Previously, in areas of georesource concentration, cities and settlements were formed with people exploiting these georesources. However, imperfect technologies lead to rapid depletion of reserves and industrial and environmental disasters, which affect the vulnerability of cities and the people living in them. The analysis of applied technologies has demonstrated that potash extraction is accompanied by a low recovery ratio, high mine accidents, and environmental problems. The principles of sustainable development of geo-resources for the creation of mining technologies that ensure industrial safety, environmental sustainability, and extending the life of the mining enterprise to save working places will reduce the vulnerability of cities. This article proposes the use of the room-and-pillar mining method with the replacement of natural supports with artificial ones. Three-stage stoping with backfill is considered. Numerical modelling has shown stabilisation of mining and geomechanical processes, which confirms the prospectivity of the method with backfill. For these purposes, this research presents a new backfill composition based on local industrial waste. Schemes of backfill preparation and feeding into the mined-out space are proposed. The proposed technology, based on the principles of sustainable development of georesources, is the foundation for an economically profitable, environmentally friendly, and socially responsible mining enterprise. The implementation of the principles of sustainable development of georesources will allow for the preservation of cities and reduce their vulnerability.

It is found that regions with depleted, or on the verge of depletion, of mineral resources are subject to additional pressures due to intensifying social and environmental problems. This paper proposes the development of the mining industry, reducing the dependence of the economy on the sharp volatility of the raw materials market in a period of global shocks by addressing social and environmental problems in regions with a depleting mineral resource base. It is assumed that the geotechnology development from simple mineral extraction to technologies providing a full cycle of georesources development with industrial waste recycling contributes to the resource provision of sustainable development. The material and mineralogical composition of the four tailing dumps (Uchalinskiy, Buribayskiy, Sibayskiy and Gaiskiy Ore-Processing plants have been studied) united with the similarity of the processed raw materials, and as a consequence, the similar enrichment technology has been studied and established. An approximate estimate of valuable components left in industrial wastes was made. The possibility of valuable component extraction (e.g., gold) from tailings using double agitation cyanidation was substantiated. There is no necessity of obligatory grinding of tailings to increase the recovery rate of valuable components. It was experimentally determined that the extraction of gold from tailings is 75.9–82.14% and depends on the investigated technogenic raw material. It has been proved that industrial waste can be recycled for the purpose of the resource provision of sustainable development. The need for further, more detailed studies of industrial formations has been identified. This will help to identify patterns of valuable component distribution in the industrial mass and to study its extraction possibilities in more details.