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Over the years, INAP has
instigated and funded a number of key acid drainage research projects
to fill knowledge gaps. Cutting-edge technologies are studied, acid
drainage (AD) measures at specific sites are examined, and literature
reviews are undertaken to summarise AD state-of-the-art.
Current and upcoming INAP projects
are:
On a global scale, pit lake monitoring programs have generated a wealth of data on the geochemistry of pit lakes over the past three decades. These data could provide valuable insight on the likely water quality of future pit lakes and the design of mine closure plans. As such, there is a great need for an online, searchable database of pit lake observations. Between 2010 and 2012, INAP has funded the development of the INAP Pit Lakes Database (http://pitlakesdatabase.org) which compares the surface water chemistry (pH, electrical conductivity, major cations and anions, and trace metals) of existing pit lakes based on location, ore body type, host rock, and commodity. For a user-specified parameter, the database generates pH-versus-concentration plots for all pit lakes color-coded by ore deposit type, plus time-versus-concentration plots for individual lakes. For a given ore body type, the database calculates the minimum, maximum, and median concentrations of each parameter which can be used to estimate the likely range of future lake water quality in pit lakes developing in similar ore bodies. The database will also calculate the variance between these observed data ranges and predicted values entered by the user. The database was designed and developed by Emmon Johnson (M.Sc. Graduate Student) and Devin Castendyk (Associate Professor) at the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, State University of New York, College at Oneonta. The developers welcome contributions of water quality data from existing pit lakes. For questions about the database or to contribute data, please email Emmon Johnson at: johnep71@suny.oneonta.edu
Pit lakes are complex geochemical systems that require a multidisciplinary approach to predict their post-mining water quality and to develop mitigation strategies to improve their water quality. In 2009, the Pit Lake Workbook Committee of the Acid Drainage Technology Initiative, Metal Mining Sector (ADTI-MMS) produced one of the first comprehensive guidebooks exclusively devoted to pit lakes, titled Mine Pit Lakes: Characteristics, Predictive Modeling, and Sustainability. This 304-page guidebook is a unique international collaboration addressing all aspects of pit lake characteristics, planning, predictive modeling, remediation, and sustainable development for both arid and humid climates around the world. Of the 27 contributing authors, 7 are from Australia, 5 are from Canada, and 3 are from Germany, with the remainder from the United States. Recognizing the similarities between precious-metal, base-metal, uranium, coal, iron, diamond, aggregate, and oil sands mine pit lakes, the guidebook is written for all sectors of the mining industry where open pit mining techniques are employed. The guidebook was edited by Devin Castendyk (Associate Professor, State University of New York, College at Oneonta), and Ted Eary (Principal Geochemist, InTerraLogic, Inc., Fort Collins, Colorado), and published by the Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration (SME), Littleton, Colorado. Copies may be purchased online at: http://www.smenet.org/store/mining-books.cfm/Mine-Pit-Lakes/305-2
- Diavik Test
Pile Research
Prediction techniques for the behaviour of sulphide containing
waste rock dumps could be significantly improved with large-scale
waste rock testing. The high costs involved with such testing
prompted INAP members to commission the design of a Scale-up study.
The project was initiated
in September, 2004. Based on this design, a project was developed at the Diavik
Mine in Northern Canada. A suite of acid drainage prediction tests
are being carried out to be followed by the construction of a fully instrumented
test pile of waste rock. This will enable researchers to better
understand what actually happens inside the waste rock pile and
how this compares to various prediction methods. INAP members were invited to a site visit in August of 2008. The project continues
being jointly funded by INAP, additional contributions from INAP
member companies, the Mine Environment Neutral Drainage (MEND)
project in Canada, and the Canadian National Science and Environment
Research Council (NSERC).
- Store and Release Covers – The Role of Vegetation (Stage 2)
In 2006 the Australian Centre for Minerals Extension and Research (ACMER) commissioned three institutions with extensive skills and expertise in this field to complete a research project titled: Designing Effective Store-Release Covers For The Long-Term Containment Of Mine Waste – The Role Of Vegetation (Stage 2). Research objectives included: (1) to use water balance data for vegetated store-release covers to assess the performance of existing covers, and contribute to improved design of future covers, (2) provide a workable model that links into existing cover water balance models, and effectively describes annual water use as a function of weather, leaf area index, changes in root zone properties and cover construction technique, and (3) facilitate significant improvement in the capacity of existing water balance models to describe hydrological processes in waste storage facilities. This ACMER research project, managed by the Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation at The University of Queensland, was designed to address these issues by quantifying and modeling the water uptake processes of different soil and vegetation community combinations which could be (or are being) used as store-release covers at four established sites with differences in climate, vegetation, geology and soils from western and eastern regions of Australia.
The three teams included:
- Prof. Derek Eamus – University of Technology Sydney (UTS);
- Dr. Christoph Hinz and Dr. Eric Veneklaas – The University of Western Australia (UWA);
- Dr. Thomas Baumgartl, Dr. David Doley and Assoc. Prof David Mulligan – The University of Queensland’s Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation (UQ’s CMLR).
Key input was also provided by Mr. Mike O’Kane (O’Kane Consultants) and Prof. Ward Wilson (University of Alberta)
Completed Research
Projects include (Click title for more information):
More information, including project reports
and presentations, can be made available by contacting the Technical
Manager, Terrence
Chatwin
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The International Network for Acid Prevention
