{"id":1179222,"date":"2020-04-20T10:11:25","date_gmt":"2020-04-20T15:11:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mining.com\/?p=1020941"},"modified":"2020-04-20T10:11:25","modified_gmt":"2020-04-20T15:11:25","slug":"chinas-recent-tailings-leak-the-biggest-in-20-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/?p=1179222","title":{"rendered":"China\u2019s recent tailings leak the biggest in 20 years"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>China\u2019s environment ministry&nbsp;said on Monday that a tailings breach last month at the country\u2019s largest molybdenum mine was the worse environmental&nbsp;disaster in almost 20 years.<\/p>\n<div class='d-flex justify-content-center d-xs-block d-sm-block d-md-none'>\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 spillage on March 28 at Yichun<br \/>\nLuming\u2019s tailings storage&nbsp;in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang sent<br \/>\n2.53 million cubic metres of mining waste into the local river system, reviving<br \/>\nfears over the safety of ponds used for tailings.<\/p>\n<p>The waste reached as far as 110 km (68.35 miles) southwest of the mining site, where the chemical oxygen demand reading (DOC) \u2014 a measure of water quality \u2014 was 5.7 times higher than standard levels, <em>Reuters<\/em> reported.<\/p>\n<p>While there were no casualties, China\u2019s Ministry of Emergency Management and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mining.com\/china-to-inspect-tailings-dams-after-spill-at-molybdenum-mine\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">pledged on Friday<\/a> to conduct centralized investigations of hidden risks at tailings dams.<\/p>\n<p>The inspections, they said in a<br \/>\njointly held videoconference, will focus on facilities close to residential<br \/>\nareas, out of service for an extended time, or likely to cause major<br \/>\nenvironmental pollution along the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers.<\/p>\n<p>A 2018 assessment of the site by the Chinese Ministry of Emergency Management concluded that the company and its tailings storage \u201chad serious potential safety risks.\u201d The mine had already been fined<a href=\"http:\/\/www.chinadaily.com.cn\/a\/202003\/31\/WS5e829f85a310128217283361.html\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">&nbsp;at least twice for concerns related to tailings management<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Tailings dams have been under close<br \/>\nscrutiny globally since&nbsp;last year\u2019s tailings dam collapse at Vale\u2019s (NYSE:<br \/>\nVALE) Brazil C\u00f3rrego do Feij\u00e3o iron ore mine, which killed 270 people and<br \/>\ncontaminated nearby streams.<\/p>\n<p>Until then, there were no set of<br \/>\nuniversal rules defining exactly what a tailings dam is, how to build one and<br \/>\nhow to care for it after it is decommissioned.<\/p>\n<p>Previous effort to improve<br \/>\nprocesses included the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/worldminetailingsfailures.org\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">World Mine Tailings Failures<\/a>, an online database aimed at<br \/>\nexposing the cause of tailing dams disasters, giving direction on how to prevent<br \/>\nthem.<\/p>\n<p>Only in the past year, however, have organizations and miners across the globe stepped up efforts to set global standards.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mining.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tsf-public-data-1024x666.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1019541\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mining.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tsf-public-data-1024x666.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.mining.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tsf-public-data-300x195.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mining.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tsf-public-data-768x499.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mining.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tsf-public-data.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>Taken from: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.responsibleminingfoundation.org\/research\/tailings-management2020\"  rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">RMI Report 2020.<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The International Council on Mining and Metals&nbsp;(ICMM), a London-based industry group representing 27 major mining companies, formed&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mining.com\/brazils-deadly-dam-collapse-pushes-miners-set-global-rules-tailings\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">an independent panel of experts<\/a>&nbsp;in charge of developing global standards for tailings facilities.<\/p>\n<p>The Church of England, which<br \/>\ninvests in mining companies through its pensions for retired clergy, along with<br \/>\nits partners,&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.mining.com\/miners-challenged-urgently-reveal-tailings-safety-records\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">launched in April 2019 a global inquiry<\/a>&nbsp;into mining waste<br \/>\nstorage systems of more than 700 resources companies.<\/p>\n<p>It now asks companies to disclose<br \/>\ndata on tailings dams on a regular basis.<\/p>\n<p>Switzerland-based&nbsp;Responsible Mining Foundation&nbsp;(RMF)&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mining.com\/miners-response-to-brazils-dam-disaster-still-weak-report\/\"  rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">published a study in early April<\/a>, showing that investor-led action had resulted in improved transparency regarding the state of such facilities.<\/p>\n<p>The vast majority of miners,<br \/>\nhowever, have yet to demonstrate they are reviewing how they effectively manage<br \/>\ntailings-related risks.<\/p>\n<p>The non-profit, funded by the Dutch<br \/>\nand Swiss governments and some small philanthropic organizations,<br \/>\nsaid&nbsp;that while a global standard on tailings management is a welcome<br \/>\ninitiative, it could be significantly strengthened to become a real<br \/>\ngame-changer in terms of tailings safety.<\/p>\n<p>China has nearly 8,000 tailings<br \/>\ndams, the most of any country in the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Environment ministry said waste reached as far as 110 km (68.35 miles) southwest of the operation, the country&#8217;s largest molybdenum mine.<\/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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