Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining, and Safety’s Post

The grants support work like the Friendship Highwall Reclamation Project in Jefferson County, Ohio, which eliminated more than 9,000 linear ft of dangerous exposed cliffs and transformed the area into parkland, native wetlands, forest and prairie. #mining #environment

Canada’s Mining Industry — Bringing Environmental Risk to You & Your Community?⚠️⛔️ ☠️⛏️😳⚠️ Globe & Mail - Niall McGee: Failure of Victoria Gold processing plant in Yukon spurred by rock collapse inside gold mine. An internal rock collapse at a gold mine in the Yukon was a major factor in the collapse of a gold processing plant operated by Victoria Gold Corp., The Globe and Mail has learned. 
Whitehorse-based Victoria Gold on Monday said that its heap leach pad had failed at its Eagle gold mine, and that part of the infrastructure had breached the containment region, raising the possibility of environmental damage from cyanide leaking into the environment. 
Heap leaching involves stacking mined ore into giant piles and then sprinkling it with hundreds of litres of water laced with cyanide. Assisted by gravity, the toxic solution causes gold to leach from the ore. The resulting “pregnant” solution then drips into a lined outdoor pond. The solution is finally pumped to an enclosed facility where the gold is collected.

The company did not say what caused its heap leach pad to fail, but images that have circulated online indicate that a significant rock collapse had occurred. 
A source familiar with the situation confirmed that a major rockslide had occurred. The source said it wasn’t an external, naturally occurring event, but one that started when the stacked rocks collapsed. 
The Globe is not identifying the source because the person was not authorized to speak publicly.
John McConnell, chief executive of Victoria Gold, did not respond to multiple requests for comment. 
Heap leach plants must be monitored continuously to make sure that the cyanide solution is percolating through the rock. In the event of a buildup of solution, the weight of the rock can increase exponentially, and it can collapse, causing a rockslide. 
Investigators with the Yukon government arrived on site shortly after the heap leach failure and are working to ascertain the extent of the damage.
John Thompson, senior communications analyst, energy, mines and resources with the Yukon government wrote in an e-mail to The Globe that part of the slide spilled outside the heap leach containment area at the base of the facility.

The State of Alaska, along with many other states for whom coal is an important natural resource, today filed a petition in U.S. District Court, District of Washington D.C., asking the court to vacate a recently adopted U.S. Department of Interior (DOI) rule that would, if left unchecked, severely undercut Alaska’s exclusive jurisdiction over the regulation of surface coal mining and reclamation operations within Alaska. “In this new Final Rule, the Secretary is overthrowing a longstanding deference to States on State-regulated mining programs. It also seeks to make the federal government the first regulator. But worst of all, it requires the Secretary to ignore vital information from States that could verify or disprove whether violations exist,” said Alaska Attorney General Treg Taylor. The DOI Final Rule amends the existing “Ten-Day Notice Rule.” This rule allows, and has always allowed, DOI’s Office of Surface Mining (OSM) to become involved if states do not promptly respond to criticisms about coal mining operations or permit compliances. For decades, Alaska has worked cooperatively and successfully with OSM and the public under the rule – responding to notices, working with mine operators, and working with the concerned citizenry. OSM has praised Alaska for its regulatory practices with respect to both active mines and abandoned mine reclamation (restoration). Yet under the new Final Rule, OSM would prematurely insert itself into Alaska’s response actions, unreasonably expand the circumstances in which OSM would interject itself and invite citizen complaints without requiring the interested citizen to notify the state. #WeAreAKLaw

Happy Birthday to the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA)! SMCRA grew out of the environmental concerns around strip mining. Surface coal mining had been around since the 1930s, and some states began regulating them in the 1940s. Despite this, with high demand for coal power, environmental concerns were often set aside or ignored. With regulations varying from state to state, it was hard to hold mining companies to a consistent standard. In the early 1970s, as surface mining became more prevalent, Congress sent mining regulation bills to President Ford, only to be vetoed. Congress persevered, however, and in 1977 President Carter signed SMCRA into law. SMCRA both regulates active coal mines and created a reclamation program for abandoned mine lands. The active mine program sets standards for environmental impacts, require companies to obtain permits and post reclamation bonds prior to mining, gives inspectors authority to review mining operations and enforce violations; and restricts mining altogether on certain lands such as National Parks and Wilderness Areas. For inactive coal mines, SMCRA created an Abandoned Mine Land (AML) fund, financed by a tax on coal, to pay for reclamation and safeguarding of mines that were abandoned prior to 1977 (it was later amended to allow funds to be spent on post-1977 abandoned mines as well). Part of the fund also supports responding to emergencies such as coal fires, subsidence, and landslides. Colorado's Inactive Mine Reclamation Program receives, on average, $3 million each year in "fee based" funding for safeguarding and program operations, in addition to approximately $10 million for coal related reclamation from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. There is no other program to address past mining hazards, and minimal funding is available for environmental projects.

Advancing Reclamation, Mining, and Social Impact in British Columbia The Province of British Columbia (Government of British Columbia), Teck Resources Limited, and the Taku River Tlingit First Nation Government are partnering to remediate the former Tulsequah Chief mine site. This initiative marks a significant step towards environmental stewardship, reconciliation, and sustainable mining practices. The project will be set up at Tulsequah Chief mine, within TRTFN territory, approximately 100 km southwest of Atlin. The area is a historic copper, lead, and zinc mine. The main objective of all actions is to address acid rock drainage and restore the site according to Tlingit values. The remediation Cost is estimated at C$48 million and annual monitoring cost at C$27 million. Key Actions: 2024-25 Work: Teck will undertake site investigation, establish safe access, assess underground conditions, monitor water quality, and evaluate waste rock disposal. Collaborative Planning: Teck and TRTFN are co-developing the reclamation and closure plan, ensuring it aligns with TRTFN’s vision for future use. Social and Environmental Impact: Reconciliation: This partnership underscores a collective commitment to reconciliation and incorporating Taku River Tlingit First Nation’s rights and laws into reclamation planning. Sustainability: Reflects modern, responsible mining practices aimed at protecting the Tulsequah River and restoring the land for TRTFN’s beneficial use. Josie Osborne stated, “We are dedicated to ensuring the Tulsequah Chief mine site is remediated to meet high environmental standards, fostering sustainability and reconciliation”. Teck's VP of Environment, Scott Maloney, added, “This cooperative effort highlights the importance of all parties working together to advance remediation in support of reconciliation and sustainability.” #mining, #miningnews, #reclamation, #environment, #britishcolumbia

For industry outsiders, the concept of mine reclamation is not often apparent. But the truth is that most mining projects cannot go ahead without a properly financed and guaranteed mine clean up plan. The concept is that after the mine ceases to be operated, the property has to be restored to its original form. That sounds simple, but putting arrangements in place many years into the future when the parties to the mine operations and ownership almost undoubtedly will change is complex. For example, do such arrangements survive a company bankruptcy? As the mining industry evolves, alongside the evolution of environmental protection legislation and innovations in reclamation technologies, stakeholders are faced with a myriad of regulatory challenges and opportunities when implementing reclamation strategies. My Dentons colleagues Alex MacWilliam and Kate Wiltse recently co-authored an article for the Canadian Mining Journal, in which they discuss the regulatory landscape governing mine reclamation in Canada, highlighting the importance of understanding legal frameworks, leveraging technological advancements, and well-planned liability and security regulations. It's a complex issue to deal with. Read the article: https://ow.ly/VP7z30sEOZ6 #Mining #Regulatory #MineReclamation #Technology #EnvironmentalProtection

Landowners have to be a part of that negotiation. That's the agreement that matters the most, not the MOA. MOA is a non compliance agreement. PNG Landowners wake up from your deep sleep. Wafi Landowners will miss out again, big time. MOAs are MRA's weaknesses, designed to get the projects over the line. Promises of benefits in MOA for Landowners actually do not happen.... the writing is on the wall, go to all the mining projects & you will see the same things happening over & over again & again...We have lost the plot.. let's get together & stop this nonsense or else the ripping off our resources will continue & eventually turn into rape.

Structural health, containment, and operational status are ongoing aspects of a vibrant effort, SOW, and practice - about any #mining operation. Open ended questions ... "At the media briefing, they couldn’t say how much contaminated water from the landslide is being contained, how much contaminated water was released and how much cyanide was in the HLP ore at the time of the accident. It’s also unclear how much, if any, contaminated water escaped the property. ..." are not ... The #monitoring opportunity allows for an answer at any time, all the time. Anything else is just #observing. #RRM #data_alignment #responsible_mining

Safe and sustainable. How do you maintain concrete water infrastructure assets? What are we protecting against? https://bit.ly/3B0qlZS #Concrete #Construction #Maintenance #Infrastructure #Water #AssetManagement #Mining #Council #Civil #AddingLifeToConcrete

This is a story of ‘epic mismanagement’ of the last opencast mining site in Wales. A site that has not delivered on promises to renew the old coal and slag tips above Penydarren, Merthyr Tydfil. That has local residents concerned about its safety. And has now been part of an investigation by the Senedd Climate Committee. The Ffos y Fran Land Reclamation Scheme was a significant project. Money generated from coal extraction was intended to redevelop the area for local residents once the site closed. But this hasn’t happened. Despite making profits, the company operating the site hasn’t provided the agreed restoration funds. Estimates for restoring the site now range from £50 million to £120 million. And it seems the site operator has no plans to restore the site as promised. The Senedd Climate Committee says the local council is in a difficult position. Because of financial burdens, they may have little choice but to accept what the site operator offers. All of which means that the local community is now looking at a permanent scar across its countryside. While Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council strives to see the land restored as much as possible. All of these factors were considered during the inquiry by the Senedd Climate Committee into opencast mining sites. Along with information provided by local residents, campaign groups and Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. Regarding the Ffos-y-Fran site, the Committee has called for: ➡️ Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council to make sure that reworked restoration plans achieve the objectives of the original plan, as a minimum. ➡️ Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council to ask local residents for their opinions on the new restoration plans for the Ffos-y-Fran site. ➡️ The Welsh Government to make changes to prevent similar problems in the future, including those related to coal-tip reclamation sites. Explore all the recommendations from the inquiry into the restoration of opencast mining sites 👉 https://lnkd.in/eJj9NVV4