Reclamation
of Sulphide Tailings Using Municipal Solid Waste Compost: Literature
Review and Recommendation
Mine Environment Neutral Drainage at CANMET-MMSL |
MEND Project
2.25.1a
July 1992
EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY
Falconbridge
Limited requested that the Centre in Mining and Mineral Exploration
Research at Laurentian University conduct a literature review and
make recommendations on the use of municipal compost in the reclamation
of sulphide tailings. The extent and continuing burden of acid mine
drainage (AMD) from sulphide tailings has prompted the federal and
provincial governments, and the mining industry to look for permanent
solutions. This report describes the basis of the AMD problem and
the major solutions that have been proposed for tailings abandonment.
One promising approach is the creation of an oxygen barrier on tailings
that would prevent penetration of atmospheric oxygen, which is the
main agent of tailings oxidation and AMD production.
The establishment
of artificial wetlands on tailings is being researched and applied
at some sites to form an oxygen barrier and create a chemical reducing
regime in the tailings. However, many tailings sites are not amenable
to flooding or the maintenance of wetlands. New forms of oxygen
barriers are under development that will maintain a layer of water
saturated material on top of the tailings and greatly suppress oxygen
diffusion. The cover layer could consist of fine, silt-like material,
but this material is very expensive or not locally obtainable in
the tailings areas of the north. Municipal solid waste (MSW) compost
is proposed as a material which could be used as an oxygen barrier
cover for tailings. The compost layer would function as both a physical
barrier and as an oxygen-consuming layer that would permanently
prevent sulphide oxidation and the resultant AMD.
The vast areas
of sulphide tailings in Canada would require a great amount of MSW
compost for such reclamation. In 1991, Ontario municipalities were
told by the provincial government to divert 50% of the solid waste
stream from landfills and incineration by the year 2000. An important
component of meeting this goal is the recycling of organic waste
by making compost. The tailings cover approach could utilize all
the MSW compost that could be produced in Ontario for many decades.
This application appears to be a Awin-win@ situation for both the
mining industry and the municipalities, providing it is technically
feasible, environmentally safe and socially acceptable.
Study Objectives
This literature
review addresses the following objectives:
- Review what
is already understood about remediation of acidic mine tailings
to avoid the problem of acid mine drainage,
- Determine
what is known about the characteristics of MSW compost and other
types of organic matter, and how these wastes could be used in
tailings reclamation,
- Examine
environmental regulations and socioeconomic concerns about the
use of MSW compost, sewage sludge and other large volume sources
of organic matter,
- Examine
the availability and costs of using MSW compost,
- Recommend
experimental studies to address unresolved technical questions
about MSW compost and other organic materials as oxygen barriers
on tailings.
Conclusions
A literature
review of what is known about the physical and chemical characteristics
of MSW compost, and other organic materials, revealed that a compost
layer on tailings could be beneficial in five ways:
- Physical
oxygen barrier - the compost would be saturated with water
over at least part of its depth so that the limiting factor in
oxygen diffusion would be the diffusivity of oxygen in water;
- Oxygen-consuming
barrier- the continued decomposition of compost creates a
large biological oxygen demand that acts as a sink for diffusion
of atmospheric oxygen or dissolved oxygen;
- Chemical
inhibition - compounds and decomposition products in the MSW
compost that leach into the tailings inhibit the growth and metabolism
of sulphate-producing bacteria;
- Chemical
amelioration - organic constituents in the MSW compost can
cause the reductive dissolution of ferric oxides and prevent indirect
ferric sulphide oxidation and acid generation;
- Reduced
water infiltration - reduced hydraulic conductivity of compacted
compost may prevent infiltration of precipitation, thus decreasing
tailings groundwater flow.
Three compost
cover layer models are proposed to produce and maintain these functions.
Two models consist of a layer of compost (of undetermined depth),
which is compacted by an overburden layer of sand and gravel. In
one model the bottom of the compost layer is separated from the
tailings by another coarse layer to hydraulically isolate it from
the tailings. In one model, compost is ploughed into the upper layer
of tailings before the compacted compost is placed, so that there
is chemical contact between the compost and the oxidized portion
of the tailings. The main purpose of the overburden layer is to
keep the compost layer permanently compacted so that air-filled
pore space is minimized and incoming precipitation can produce a
high degree of saturation. The overburden will also be a protective
layer against erosion, evaporation and runoff which could destroy
the compost layer as an oxygen barrier. The third and most inexpensive
compost model consists of a deep layer of compost placed directly
on the tailings.
Experimental
investigations in the laboratory are required to assess whether
the compost cover layer models will function as expected, in the
field. Other waste materials can also be incorporated into the compost
cover layer to investigate how they alter its physical and chemical
properties. Analyses are also required of the leachates that come
out of the compost cover layers and tailings, since MSW compost
may release heavy metals, organic chemicals and pathogens into the
environment. Ontario has released strict guidelines for compost
quality which necessitate excellent source separation and production
control in order to meet the specifications for Aunrestricted use@
compost.
The risks of
contaminants are largely a function of the quality of the feedstocks
and the optimization of the composting process. For MSW compost,
separation of organic waste from non-biodegradable garbage and hazardous
chemicals is essential in producing uncontaminated, high-quality
compost. Sewage sludge compost may also become a high-quality material
if pathogens are killed and if the wastewater stream is uncontaminated
by industrial effluents. However, immature, uncured composts offer
advantages for use in tailings reclamation because of their high
oxygen-consuming demand and the presence of a wide variety of organic
compounds that could function in chemical amelioration of AMD. Immature
compost could also be diverted much earlier in the composting process
and be much cheaper for a municipality to produce.
The quality
of leachates from mature and immature MSW compost and other organic
waste components used on tailings will require careful experimental
examination to ensure public health and environmental safety. Early
and genuine involvement by the community is essential to the acceptance
of any tailings reclamation plan involving MSW compost or other
organic wastes.
Other waste
materials offer some or all the benefits of MSW compost as an oxygen
barrier. Forest industry and paper mill wastes are plentiful and
a nuisance in many of the areas of Canada where tailings are located.
Peat is a common and abundant natural material in bogs throughout
the north and may be useful for tailings covers, if it can be managed
as a renewable resource. Tailings leachates will have to be tested
for harmful compounds from these wastes, as well as for any beneficial
effects on AMD.
MSW compost
or other organic wastes will be useful for the mining industry only
if they provide a permanent, socially-acceptable and cost-effective
solution to tailings abandonment. Even if the municipalities provide
MSW compost at no charge or with subsidization, transportation costs
from the major sources in the south to tailings sites in the north
may be prohibitive for a mining company. Ontario government policy
and regulations that currently prevent the export of waste from
a municipality should be examined with respect to low-grade compost
use for tailings reclamation.
Recommendations
- Laboratory
work using instrumented leaching columns should be conducted to
test the physical aspects and optimization of the compost cover
layer models.
- Laboratory
analyses of leachate composition from unsaturated and saturated
compost layers, containing compost of various degrees of maturity,
are required to establish environmental risk.
- Laboratory
studies of chemical processes within tailings under the optimal
cover layer design will confirm whether reducing conditions are
present and chemical amelioration is occurring.
- Field lysimeter
studies of the optimal compost cover layer design, as determined
by laboratory experiments, should be conducted at the Nickel Rim
tailings site.
- Discussions
should be initiated by Falconbridge Ltd. with provincial government
ministries, municipal government and the community concerning
the use of MSW compost in tailings reclamation.
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