Division of Information Technology, Engineering and the Environment
Applied Centre for Structural and Synchrotron Studies
Applied Centre for Structural and Synchrotron Studies
Project Duration: 2006-2009
Funding: AMIRA, ARC Linkage Grant
Chief Investigators: Roger Smart, Jun Li, Russell Schumann,** George Levay,** Stewart Miller, * Warwick Stewart*
Description:
The management of acid and toxic metal drainage from sulfide-containing
mining waste, stored as rock dumps or tailings, is of fundamental
importance to the continuing social acceptance of mining industries and
to the environmental costs of current, exhausted and abandoned mine
sites. In Australia alone, it is estimated that current waste
management costs of operating mines exceed $80M p.a. at >120 sites with
>$600M in inherited liability at abandoned sites [e.g. 1]. In the
USA, there are more than 200,000 acid rock drainage (ARD) sites.
Historically, there has been scant regard for the management of these
problems until the last decade when liability issues have dramatically
increased. For example, failure to identify the ARD potential at
the Equity Silver mine, British Columbia led to an environmental
liability of close to US$50M. Acid rock drainage (ARD) from dumps
comprises the large majority of these management costs. The
application of ARD treatment methods is already established but it is
widely acknowledged that the mechanisms of reaction in ARD and treatment
options are not fully understood, limiting the effectiveness of
assessment and long-term control.
The project proposed here consists of fundamental research
accompanying an applied, industry-supported component. The applied
component is focused on the critical assessment of currently available
technologies that aim to inhibit sulfide oxidation and acid/toxic metal
release in mine waste rock and tailings for improved management of ARD.
The short term effectiveness of several of these treatments has been
previously investigated, but without a complete understanding of the
reaction mechanisms and stability of the products. The fundamental
component focuses on the understanding of the reactions occurring and
the stability of the products. It is only through this fundamental
understanding that effective long-term ARC amelioration strategies can
be put in place.
* Environmental Geochemistry International P/L
** Levay & Co Environmental Services
