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08.13
environment
work as part of the mine ventilation team. “Environ-
mental issues were almost an afterthought,” he says.
“The situation today is very different and the envi-
ronmental people are at the heart of the planning for
all new projects. No longer do we have to justify our
existence. New mines cannot get their mining licenc-
es unless the environmental and social work has been
done to the required standard, so our input is vital.”
Finally, what of the question of mine closure? Of-
ten perceived as simply the removal of a mine’s in-
frastructure at the cessation of mining operations and
the rehabilitation – to a lesser or greater extent – of
disturbed land, mine closure is in fact a highly com-
plex process that, in a sense, starts from the moment a
mine begins operations and which must also involve
These dust collection bag houses accommodate reverse pulse bag filter systems, one of the modern technologies that can be used for
dust collection in processing plants (photo: ACTOM Air Pollution Control).
all stakeholders, particularly neighbouring commu-
nities. Decisions taken at the start of the mine’s life,
when it is still being planned and designed, can have
an impact decades later. To take just one example, if
dumps are designed with the most economically vi-
able slope rather than a sustainable final slope, then
considerable – and costly – reshaping might be re-
quired at closure.
While legislation dictates that closure plans are
mandatory, Lake argues that the mere fact of meet-
ing legislative requirements does not guarantee that a
closure plan is necessarily well thought out. “If a clo-
sure plan has not been drawn up properly, it will not
only impact on a mine’s bottom line over time but,
perhaps more importantly, it will represent a failure
on the part of the mine to meet
its responsibilities in terms of
its obligations to the commu-
nities surrounding the mine
and to society generally. The
good news is that mines can be
closed in an optimal manner.
SRK, for example, recognised
the importance of mine closure
over 20 years ago and has since
built up considerable expertise
in this area which is available to
its clients. In SRK’s view, a ro-
bust mine closure plan is a pre-
requisite if a mine is to earn its
‘social licence’ to operate and is
arguably the single most impor-
tant element of the green min-
ing approach,” he concludes.
Photos courtesy of SRK (unless other
wise acknowledged)
Successful rehabilitation of the walls of a tailings dam.
