Tailings

disposal

Introduction finer grinding necessary on most modern ores, other

techniques have been developed. The most satis-
The disposal of mill tailings is a major environ- factory way of dealing with tailings is to make
mental problem, which is becoming more serious positive use of them, such as reprocessing in order
with the increasing exploration for metals and the to recover additional values (see Chapter 1), or to
working of lower-grade deposits. Apart from the use them as a useful product in their own fight, e.g.
visual effect on the landscape of tailings disposal, the use of coarse (20-30 mm) DMS float as railway
the major ecological effect is usually water pollu- ballast and aggregate.
tion, arising from the discharge of water contam- It is common practice in underground mines, in
inated with solids, heavy metals, mill reagents, which the method of working requires the filling
sulphur compounds, etc. (Chalkley et al., 1989). of mined-out areas, to return the coarser fraction
Waste must therefore be disposed of in both of the mill tailings underground. This method has
an environmentally acceptable and, if possible, been used since the beginning of the century in
economically viable manner (Sofr~i and Boger, South Africa's gold mines (Stradling, 1988). Back-
2002). Disposal is governed by legislation and may filling worked-out stopes reduces the volume of
involve long-term rehabilitation of the site. tailings which must be impounded on the surface,
The nature of tailings varies widely; they are but not all tailings are suited as back-fill material.
usually transported and disposed of as a slurry of It is invariably necessary to de-slime the tailings,
high water content, but they may be composed of the resultant slimes, which may account for up to
very coarse dry material, such as the float fraction 50% of the total weight, requiting surface disposal
from dense medium plants. Due to the lower costs (Down and Stocks, 1977a). Some tailings swell or
of mining from open pits, ore from such locations is shrink after the fill has been placed, and some have
often of very low grade, resulting in the production the useful property of being self-cementing, which
of large amounts of very fine tailings. removes the necessity of adding cement to the back-
fill, which is common practice prior to placement
Methods of disposal of tailings underground. The use of back-fill can cause surface
disposal problems, in that borrowed fill may have
The methods used to dispose of tailings have devel- to be used to construct the tailings impoundment,
oped due to environmental pressures, changing as the coarse fraction of the tailings, which is often
milling practice, and realisation of profitable appli- used for construction, has been removed.
cations. Early methods included discharge of Back-fill methods have not been applied to the
tailings into rivers and streams, which is still prac- large amounts of tailings produced by open-pit
tised at some mines, and the dumping of coarse mining methods, as this would entail temporary
dewatered tailings on to land. The many nineteenth- storage during the life of the mine prior to disposal
century tips seen in Cornwall and other parts of in the worked-out pit and the most widely used
Britain are evidence of this method. Due to the method is to contain the tailings within a purpose
damage caused by such methods, and the much built dam. The impoundment must provide safe and
 Tailings disposal 401

economical storage for the required volume of tail- Tailings dams

ings and permit the construction and operation of
The design, construction, and operation of tailings
pollution control facilities.
dams is a major consideration for most new mining
For operations that are close to the sea, subma-
developments, as well as for many existing opera-
rine tailings disposal is an alternative to conven-
tions (Klohn, 1981; Vick, 1981).
tional tailings disposal provided the governmental
It is economically advantageous to site the
regulations permit disposal in such a manner. The
impoundment close to the mine, but this imposes
basic submarine tailings disposal design comprises
limits on site selection. The type of tailings
a tailings line to a de-aeration/mixing chamber,
embankment is generally determined by the local
with a seawater intake line, and discharge to
seismic activity, water clarification, tailings prop-
location and depth allowing gravity flow of a
erties and stability, tailings distribution, foundation
coherent density to the final sedimentation area.
and hydrological conditions, and environmental
Such systems can place mine tailings at loca-
conditions (Mohd. Azizli et al., 1995). The ground
tions and depths constraining environmental impact underlying the dam must be structurally sound and
to restricted areas of the seabed and deep water able to bear the weight of the impoundment. If such
turbidity (Ellis et al., 1995). This form of tail- a site cannot be found close to the mine, it may
ings disposal attracts considerable attention from be necessary to pump the tailings, at a high slurry
environmental groups as the final disposal of the density, to a suitable location.
tailings is not in a controlled impoundment but Tailings dams may be built across fiver valleys,
is released directly into the lower levels of the or as curved or multi-sided dam walls on valley
ocean and can therefore affect the deep sea eco- sides, this latter design facilitating drainage. On
system. The process is increasingly used in the fiat, or gently sloping ground, lagoons are built
Asia-Pacific region where on-land disposal options with walls on all sides of the impoundment.
are problematic. In comparison to tailing retentions The disposal of tailings adds to the produc-
on land, the mining industry has argued that subma- tion costs, so it is essential to make disposal as
rine tailings disposal in the Asia-Pacific region is cheap as possible. This requirement led initially
safer for the local people and the environment as to the development of the once commonly used
the land is unsuited to the construction of tailings upstream method of tailings-dam construction, so
dams due to the natural topography, regular seismic named because the centre line of the dam moves
activity, and high rainfall (McKinnon, 2002). Due upstream into the pond.
to the complexity of the decision-making process In this method, a small starter dam is placed at
for the viability of submarine tailings disposal, tools the extreme downstream point (Figure 16.1) and the
such as an expert system have been developed to dam wall is progressively raised on the upstream
assist mining project planners explore the feasi- side. The tailings are discharged by spigoting off
bility of this method of tailings disposal (Ganguli the top of the starter dyke and, when the initial pond
et al., 2002). is nearly filled, the dyke is raised and the cycle

Figure 16.1 Upstream tailings darm

402 Wills' Mineral Processing Technology

repeated. Various methods are used to raise the The method suffers from the disadvantage that
dam; material may be taken from the dried surface the dam wall is built on the top of previously
of the previously deposited tailings and the cycle deposited unconsolidated slimes retained behind
repeated, or more commonly the wall may be built the wall. There is a limiting height to which this
from the coarse fraction of the tailings, separated type of dam can be built before failure occurs
out by cyclones, or spigots, the fines being directed and the tailings flow out and, because of this,
into the pond (Figures 16.2 and 16.3). the upstream method of construction is now less
The main advantages of the upstream construc- commonly used.
tion are the low cost and the speed with which The downstream method has evolved as a result
the dam can be raised by each successive dyke of efforts to devise methods for constructing larger
increment. and safer tailings dams. This method produces safer

Figure 16.2 Construction of upstream tailings dam using cyclones

Figure 16.3 Construction of tailings dam wall utilising cyclone underflows

 Tailings disposal 403

dams both in terms of static and seismic loading keeping it ahead of the tailings pond during the
(Mohd. Azizli et al., 1995). It is essentially the early stages of construction. Care, however, must
reverse of the upstream method, in that as the be exercised in raising the upstream face of the
dam wall is raised, the centreline shifts downstream dam to ensure that unstable slopes do not develop
and the dam remains founded on coarse tailings temporarily.
(Figure 16.4). Most procedures involve the use of Very stable tailings dams can be constructed
cyclones to produce sand for the dam construction. from open-pit over-burden, or waste rock,
Downstream dam building is the only method according to the local circumstances. An example
that permits design and construction of tailings is shown in Figure 16.6. Since the tailings are not
dams to acceptable engineering standards. All tail- required for the dam construction, they may be
ings dams in seismic areas, and all major dams, fed into the pool without separation of the sands
regardless of their location, should be constructed from the slimes. In some cases the output of over-
using some form of the downstream method. The burden may not be sufficient to keep the dam crest
major disadvantage of the technique is the large above the tailings pond, and it may be necessary
amount of sand required to raise the dam wall. It to combine waste rock and tailings sand-fills to
may not be possible, especially in the early stages produce a safe economical dam.
of operation, to produce sufficient sand volumes An interesting method of disposal has been used
to maintain the crest of the tailings dam above the at the Ecstall (Kidd Creek) operation at Texasgulf
rising pond levels. In such cases, either a higher Canada Ltd. (Amsden, 1974). The tailings disposal
starter dam is required or the sand supply must area consists of 3000 acres enclosed by a gravel
be augmented with borrowed fill, such procedures dyke. Mill tailings are thickened and pumped to
increasing the cost of tailings disposal. a central spigoting location inside the dam. The
The centre-line method (Figure 16.5) is a varia- system is designed to build a mountain of tailings
tion of that used to construct the downstream dam in the central area and thus keep the height of the
and the crest remains in the same horizontal posi- perimeter dyke to a minimum.
tion as the dam wall is raised. It has the advantage Erosion of dams due to wind and rain can affect
of requiting smaller volumes of sand-fill to raise the stability and produce environmental problems.
the crest to any given height. The dam can thus Many methods are used to combat this, such as
be raised more quickly and there is less trouble vegetation of the dam banks (Hill and Nothard,

Pond Beach
)uilt in stages using
rock, or borrowed fill

~and

Impervious starter dyke Drainagelayer

Figure 16.4 Downstream tailings dam

Compacted sand dykes

/
Beach
/ Pond

Drainage layer Imperviousstarter Sand Slimes

dyke

Figure 16.5 Centre-line tailings dam

404 Wills' Mineral Processing Technology

Slimes /Permeable
inner shell mpem~ea
core IPermeable\
~ o u t e r shell \
.... ti 9 , \
Grovel blanket drain

Figure 16.6 Dam constructed from overburden

1973) and chemical stabilisation to form an air and The most serious problem associated with the
water-resistant crust. disposal of tailings is the release of polluted
There is little doubt that tailings dams have water, and this has been extensively investigated
a visual impact on the environment due to their (Anon., 1980). The main effects of pollution are
regular geometric shape. Perhaps the most conspic- due to the effluent pH, which may cause ecolog-
uous is the downstream type, whose outer wall ical changes; dissolved heavy metals, such as
is continually being extended, and cannot be re- copper, lead, zinc, etc., which can be lethal to
vegetated until closure. There are, however, few fish-life if allowed to enter local water-courses;
reasons why dam walls should not be landscaped mill reagents, which are usually present in only
at some stage in their life, and many dams have very small quantities, but, nevertheless, may be
been designed to permit early visual integration harmful; and suspended solids, which should be
with the environment (Down and Stocks, 1977b). minimal if the tailings have spent long residence
An example is the impoundment at Flambeau, times in the dam, thus allowing the solids to settle
North Wisconsin, USA (Shilling and May, 1977), and produce a clear decant. The potential effect
where a rock-fill dam wall 18 m high, 24 m wide of submarine tailings on fish-life and their prey
at the crest, and l l l m wide at the base was either from altered physical habitat or from possible
designed to minimise both visual and pollution exposure to contaminants such as heavy metals
effects (Figure 16.7). The wall consists of a clay or milling reagents is of major concern (Johnson
core, with the downstream side faced with non- et al., 1998). In these cases the environment is
pyrite rock and covered with top-soil, permitting re- exposed to all of the tailings, not just the clear
vegetation and consequently reduced visual impact. decant.

Figure 16.7 Flambeau impoundment

 Tailings disposal 405

Figure 16.8 Water gain and loss in a typical tailings dam

Figure 16.8 shows a generalised representation impervious walls and floors situated below the main
of water gain and loss at a tailings impound- dam can collect this water, from where it can be
ment (Down and Stocks, 1977b). With the excep- pumped back into the tailings pond. If the dam
tion of precipitation and evaporation, the rates and wall is composed of metal-bearing rock, or sulphide
volumes of the water can be controlled to a large tailings, the seepage is often highly contaminated
extent. It is more satisfactory to attempt to prevent due to its contact with the solid tailings, and may
the contamination of natural waters rather than have to be treated separately.
to purify them afterwards, and if surface run-off The tailings are often treated with lime in order
to the dam is substantial, then interception ditches to neutralise acids and precipitate heavy metals as
should be installed. It is difficult to quantify the insoluble hydroxides before pumping to the dam.
amount of water lost to groundwater, but this can Such treated tailings may be thickened and the
be minimised by selecting a site with impervious overflow, free of heavy metals, returned to the mill
foundations, or by sealing with an artificial layer (Figure 16.9), thus reducing the water and pollutant
of clay. Seepage through the dam wall is often input to the tailings dam.
minimised by an impervious slimes layer on the Assuming good control of the above inputs and
upstream face of the dam, but this is expensive, outputs of dam water, the most important factor in
and many mines prefer to encourage free-drainage achieving pollution control is the method used to
of the dam through pervious, chemically barren remove surplus water from the dam. Decant facili-
material. In the case of upstream dams, this can ties are required on all dams, to allow excess free
be a barren starter dyke, while with downstream water to be removed. Inadequate decant design has
and centre-line constructions, a free-draining gravel caused many major dam failures. Many older dams
blanket can be used. A small seepage pond with used decant towers with discharge lines running

Lime

/ ~ Neutralisation
Tailings [ l~'aqitator Overflowto
~-:- " ) - ,. . . . . . ~, mill ;~

i Underflowto
" tailingsdam
Figure 16.9 Treatment of tailings with lime
406 Wills' Mineral Processing Technology

through the base of the dam to a downstream pump- as physical adsorption methods using active carbon,
house. Failures of such structures were common coal or bentonite clay or mineral slimes, biological
due to the high pressures exerted on the pipelines, oxidation of organics, removal of ionic species by
leading to uncontrolled losses of fluids and tail- ion exchange resins, and relatively new techniques
ings downstream. Floating, or movable, pump- such as reverse osmosis and atmospheric freezing
houses situated close to the tailings pond are now (Rao and Finch, 1989).
in common use. Advances in the disposal of tailings using semi-
Recycling of water from the decant is becoming dry or dry techniques offer a number of advan-
more important due to pressures from governments tages over the wet disposal techniques. Dry disposal
and environmentalists. As much water as possible techniques require that tailings be thickened or de-
must be reclaimed from the tailings pond for re-use watered prior to disposal. The dried tailings can
in the mill and the volume of fresh make-up water then be disposed by dry stacking, thickened tailings
used must be kept to a minimum. The difference disposal or paste fill for back-filling underground
between the total volume of water entering the tail- mines. These are all schemes that improve water
ings pond and the volume of water reclaimed plus and reagent recovery and decrease tailings volumes
evaporation losses must be stored with the tailings and footprint, which greatly assists site rehabilita-
in the dam. If that difference exceeds the volume tion (Sofr~i and Boger, 2002). Although semi-dry
of the voids in the stored tailings, there becomes a or dry disposal of tailings has benefits these tech-
surplus of free water that can build up to tremen- niques are not as capital cost-effective as the more
dous quantities over the life of a mine. A typical traditional wet disposal of tailings and require a
dam-reclaim system is shown in Figure 16.10. detailed understanding of the rheology and trans-
The main disadvantage of water reclamation is port of the dried tailings (Nguyen and Boger, 1998).
the recirculation of pollutants to the mill, which can Complexes of metals with cyanide and ammonia
interfere with processes such as flotation. Water are especially prone to stabilisation and solubili-
treatment may overcome this, at little or no extra sation in caustic solution and may require special
cost, as similar treatment would be required for treatment other than straightforward neutralisation
the effluent discharge in any case. A number of by lime. Although natural degradation occurs to
wastewater treatment techniques are available, such some extent, this is of little value in many cases

Main dam
Tailings pond

Floating pump
dam
Seepage pond

To mill

Make-up
water

Tailings from mill

Figure 16.10 Water-reclamation system

 Tailings disposal 407

during the winter months, when the tailings ponds for municipal waste-water, although the resul-
may be ice-covered, and several processes have tant heavy metal contamination of the discharge
been developed to treat cyanide-bearing effluent precludes its general use without pretreatment.
(Scott and Ingles, 1981). Alkaline chlorination, It is evident that there is much research poten-
whereby cyanide is oxidised to cyanate, has perhaps tial in these areas and that the methods used by
received the greatest attention (Eccles, 1977), but the minerals engineer are set to play an increas-
cyanides can also be effectively destroyed by ingly important role in reducing the environmental
oxidation with ozone (Jeffries and Tczap, 1978) impact of modem industry. Particular attention
or hydrogen peroxide, by reactions with sulphur is being given to the modification of mineral
dioxide and air (Lewis, 1984), and by electrochem- processing operations to mitigate environmental
ical treatment, ion-exchange, and volatilisation of impact (Feasby et al., 1995), and work has been
hydrogen cyanide. In the latter method, which has done on incorporating the management of acid
been proved full-scale in the mining industry, the mine drainage into the block model of the mine
tailings are acidified to produce hydrogen cyanide. for production planning purposes (Bennett et al.,
This is volatilised by intensive air-sparging, while 1997). The ultimate way of avoiding water-based
simultaneously recovering the evolved gas in a environmental impact is to operate dry mineral
lime solution for recycling. The aerated, acidified processes and consideration is being given to such
barren solution is then reneutralised to precipitate options, particularly in arid areas (Napier-Munn
the metal ions. and Morrison, 2002).
The mineralogical nature of the tailings often
provides natural pollution control. For instance,
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