Better understanding of treatment residuals leads to smarter disposal

Reducing closure costs

Lingering post-closure water treatment sludges and the high costs of dealing with them are a problem faced by mining companies around the world. When treatment can’t be avoided, it’s important to find responsible and sustainable ways of disposing treatment residues to reduce post-closure maintenance and costs.

Nick Brink will present a case study on innovative sludge disposal evaluation techniques on November 8, 2018 at 3:20 pm in Santiago, Chile during the Planning for Closure conference. The presentation and accompanying paper will highlight how innovative testing methods helped a closed mine substantially reduce post-closure care and maintenance costs.

At closure, residuals from mine water treatment may represent a significant cost to mine owners, particularly where leaching or other operations involving low-pH solutions were employed. Treatment may be the preferred option to minimize post-closure environmental risk, but the residual sludge from treatment processes can be equally difficult to manage. A better understanding of these residuals empowers owners to make educated decisions regarding disposal and leads to the approval of lower-cost alternatives. Stantec provides a suite of services to help the modern miner manage water treatment residuals by better understanding them so they can be disposed of, or even put to beneficial re-use, in a safe and responsible manner.

Nick Brink is a Civil Engineer in Stantec’s mining group.  His areas of expertise are tailings and mine closure.