{"id":1146936,"date":"2019-10-31T03:56:08","date_gmt":"2019-10-31T09:56:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mining.com\/?p=1005717"},"modified":"2019-10-31T03:56:08","modified_gmt":"2019-10-31T09:56:08","slug":"about-a-tenth-of-the-worlds-tailing-dams-have-had-stability-issues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/?p=1146936","title":{"rendered":"About a tenth of the world\u2019s tailing dams have had stability issues"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A global inquiry into mining waste storage systems of more than 700 resources companies, <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"http:\/\/www.mining.com\/miners-challenged-urgently-reveal-tailings-safety-records\/\" >launched in April<\/a> after the <a href=\"https:\/\/mining.com\/tragic-deja-vu-vales-dam-break-leaves-dozens-of-brazilians-under-mud\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">collapse of a dam in Brazil that killed hundreds<\/a>, shows about a tenth of the structures have had stability issues.<\/p>\n<div class='d-flex justify-content-center'>\n<div id='div-gpt-ad-1561499308230-0'><script>googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1561499308230-0');});<\/script><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The research, led by the Church of England (CoE) and fund managers, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.churchofengland.org\/sites\/default\/files\/2019-10\/PUBLIC%201st%20October%20disclosure%20database.pdf\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">reveals that at least 166 of 1,635 dams holding mining waste<\/a> \u2014 tailings \u2014 have had safety issues in the past. <\/p>\n<p>The group noted it\u2019s unclear how severe those issues had been, adding that miners said the problems had been addressed.<\/p>\n<p>The results of the inquiry are only partial, as they only reflect disclosures from <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.churchofengland.org\/sites\/default\/files\/2019-10\/PUBLIC%201st%20October%20disclosure%20database.pdf\" >less than half of the 726 companies contacted<\/a> following the\u00a0<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mining.com\/brazil-lays-criminal-charges-against-vale-auditor-in-dam-burst\/\" >collapse of\u00a0Vale\u2019s Brumadinho dam in January<\/a>, which killed at least 250 people.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote alignright\">\n<blockquote>\n<p>Less than half of the 726 miners contacted have responded, with most Chinese and Indian firms not providing information.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Most Chinese and Indian miners have yet to provide information, which leaves a significant gap in efforts to create a global picture of safety risks posed by tailing dams, the investors say.<\/p>\n<p>Companies addressed included major industry names such as<br \/>\nBHP, Rio Tinto, Anglo American, Glencore and Vale itself, which were asked to<br \/>\npublicly disclose their dams\u2019 size, construction methods and safety records.<\/p>\n<p>All the major listed miners have already replied. Three of<br \/>\nthem did so shortly after the inquiry was launched, unveiling they owned<br \/>\ntailings dams considered high or extreme-risk in the event of a catastrophic<br \/>\nfailure. High-risk indicates dams that would have an immediate impact upon<br \/>\nfailure, and could cause the deaths of at least 10 people, while extreme-risk<br \/>\ndams could cause the deaths of 100 or more people if they fail.<\/p>\n<p>The facilities in question included four \u201cextreme-risk\u201d dams<br \/>\nat BHP\u2019s Olympic Dam mine, Mount Whaleback mine, Pilbara mine and Leinster<br \/>\nmine. Two tailings dams at Rio Tinto\u2019s Andoom and Torro mines in Queensland<br \/>\nhave been deemed \u2018high-risk\u2019, along with two dams at Glencore\u2019s Mount Isa<br \/>\nmining complex.<\/p>\n<p>While those high-risk facilities made the headlines in<br \/>\nAustralian media, the risk assessment for these dams related to the damage in<br \/>\ncase of failure, not the likelihood that they will collapse.<\/p>\n<p>Currently there are no set of universal rules defining<br \/>\nexactly what a tailings dam is, how to build one and how to care for it after<br \/>\nit is decommissioned.<\/p>\n<p>There are about 3,500 tailings dams around the world. Unlike<br \/>\nthe ones used to build reservoirs or hydroelectric projects, tailings dams are<br \/>\nnot usually made from reinforced concrete or stone. They are mostly constructed<br \/>\nfrom the waste material left over from mining operations, which \u2014 depending on<br \/>\nthe type of mine \u2014 can be toxic.<\/p>\n<p>Only three countries in the world ban upstream dams \u2014 Chile,<br \/>\nPeru, and now Brazil. Chile, the world\u2019s No.1 copper producer, also regulates<br \/>\nthe minimum distance between dams and urban centres. But the nation still has<br \/>\n740 tailings deposits, only 101 of which are active, with the rest abandoned or<br \/>\ninactive, according to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/biblioteca.sernageomin.cl\/opac\/index.asp?param=o%AD%85zit%AD%99%91S%CD%9E%8C%8Co%8A%8Dw%9A~%98%A7&amp;Op=4\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">data from mining agency Sernageomin<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The results of the inquiry come as global investors are<br \/>\nincreasingly focused on ensuring mining companies reduce their environmental<br \/>\nfootprint, improve their governance and reduce the number of fatalities.<\/p>\n<p>Other than CoE, the group carrying out the inquiry (representing more<br \/>\nthan $13.5 trillion assets under management) includes Swedish Pension funds,<br \/>\nDutch funds APG and Robeco, the UK\u2019s LGPS Central fund, New Zealand Super, and BMO<br \/>\nGlobal Asset Management.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This is one of the conclusions from a  global inquiry launched after the collapse of a dam in Brazil that killed hundreds.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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