The mining town of Weipa is battening down the hatches this afternoon as a tropical low will be upgraded to a Tropical Cyclone possibly later tonight. Rio Tinto’s Weipa operation is accustomed...
Category - ENVIRONMENT
Environmental management now dominates a range of activities performed by mining companies globally. Mature mine operates recognise that their ‘license to operate’ is often determined by their past environmental performance and future plans to ensure that the environment impacted by mining operations is returned to, at the very least, pre-mining conditions.
Mining Environmental Issues and impacts of mining can occur at various stages of the mining life cycle. Exploration, Construction, Mining Operations, Closure and Remediation.
The environmental hazards of each activity and the impact of those activities can be determined by a range of factors including:
- The ore being mined;
- Characteristics of the ore body and its proximity to high impact areas;
- Ecosystem existing prior to mining activities and its’ sensitivity to the impact of mining operations;
- Methods of mining:
- Equipment used in the mining process including but not limited to production and ore processing equipment.
Typically the primary environmental concerns from mining activities include acid mine drainage, heavy metal contamination from leaching, chemical pollution from processing activities and control of erosion and sedimentation, dust deposition and environmental noise, however, there may be other impacts.
Effective environmental management in mining controls the impact of the mining activity in relation to the contamination of air, land and water and the subsequent impact of changes to the normalised conditions on the surrounding ecosystem.
Mining environmental issues management also interfaces with safety management in many organisations. Through understanding the impacts of the environment on personnel and the ecosystem in which they operate, miners may continue to build a sustainable industry.
Australasian Mine Safety Journal provides a range of information, case studies and news on the environmental issues and impacts of mining.
The Queensland Department of Natural Resources Mines and Energy has recently hi-lighted the risks to operators from lightning strikes to rubber tyred vehicles. The Department have sought to debunk...
The Western Australian Government will release a climate change policy that takes into account advances in climate science and national policy changes for the state. The initiative is driven by...
There’s still plenty of challenges in managing the environmental aspects of Glencore’s McArthur River Mine Zinc Lead operation according to to an independent monitor’s report. NT...
A new hybrid mining truck using high density compressed natural gas is not only proving successful operationally, but it is saving the environment. The truck uses new technology to convert...
Groundwater flow from aquifers to rivers, lakes and the ocean affects the productivity and diversity of aquatic ecosystems – but accurately measuring water movement below the soil is difficult for...
Environmental sustainability is vital for the survival of future generations and in an industry like mining, which has been impacting the earth for centuries, its well beyond due that global...
Australian researchers have raised fresh concerns that a major shipping disaster could harm the Great Barrier Reef, with new research revealing coal dust in seawater can kill corals and slow down the...
Australia’s minerals industry is supporting prosperity through efficient and responsible use of our water resources, with mining’s water use as a share of national consumption falling from 3.9 per...
MineARC’s innovative StormSAFE Cyclone Shelter eliminates the necessity to send staff off-site during an extreme weather emergency. It is predicted that the 2016/17 cyclone season will see a...
Working in the mining sector obviously comes with risks, however not all the risks are directly linked to the physical side of the job and its dangers. There are obvious workplace risks of course...
During a coal seam gas drilling operation in the Surat Basin, the well began to flow when the 9-5/8” casing was being run to approximately 400 m into the Hutton sandstone formation. The 13-3/8”...
