Since the early ages, mining has played an essential role in human life. History has shown that with the developments in the mining sector, humanity developed in parallel. The historical ages are undoubtedly classified as copper, bronze, and iron ages according to how people processed the metals they found in nature. Briefly, mining is the process of extracting minerals from the earth’s crust by several methods and operating them to meet the need. These minerals are employed in the production phase of millions of products people use daily and cannot relinquish. We know we need to continue mining to produce minerals employed by several industries to provide countless materials. But, we also have to consider the return from making this much mineral. The answer is, of course, more waste. Mining has a place in an extensive production area, which brings with it a large transaction volume and creates a menace as it involves the formation of different types of mine wastes in nature.
7 BILLION TONS OF WASTE A YEAR?
Simply, yes! The most effective method is reusing mining waste regarding economy and sustainability. Research indicates that by 2025, 19 billion solid wastes will be generated. At this point, maximum reuse of mining wastes will seriously relieve waste disposal. Thanks to advanced mining technologies, it becomes possible to keep the overburden to a minimum in mining operations and reuse the resulting mining wastes as a resource. Rio Tinto company, located in Quebec, Canada, converts 85% of the tons of non-bauxite anhydrite by-products it produces yearly into fertilizer for blueberry growers and provides added value. They are also working on using the waste rock material obtained from the boron mines in the Mojave Desert of California, USA, which have operated for more than 90 years in battery production due to their high lithium content. When this project is completed, their annual production capacity will reach 5.000 tons of lithium. This means enough batteries to produce 70.000 electric vehicles. It is really an impressive path, especially for the energy transition.
How can the old mines be turned into sources for the future?
Many methods, of course, can be applied and developed for waste recycling in mining. The first step should be to determine how much waste is produced and what type of property is produced and then take action in this direction. All methods to be used must be economically applicable, compatible with environmental conditions, and contain the necessary technical and feasibility details, as current legislation requires. Many companies that continue mining now focus on using resources with their own technology. Mine wastes acquired during mining operations are turned into sources after feasibility studies and industry research and made ready for use in many areas such as wind turbines, battery production, solar panels, geo-polymerization, concrete and fertilizer production. Another issue that needs to be emphasized is that the diesel fuels used by the equipment threaten the future. In this context, adaptation studies of battery-electric mining equipment continue. Until firms complete this process, many equipment manufacturers now provide companies with a way to measure and monitor their carbon emissions.
An environment-friendly mining approach undoubtedly requires monitoring the entire process, planning it from the beginning to the end, taking the necessary precautions and consciously conducting waste management. But first, for a sustainable mining understanding: “Prevention” rather than “Treatment”.
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