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Mineral and Mining Wastes: A Burgeoning Problem with a Need for Sustainable Restitution

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Innovations in Sustainable Mining

Part of the book series: Earth and Environmental Sciences Library ((EESL))

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Abstract

Mining produces substantial amount of wastes, the quantum of which is directly linked to the volume of mining. Whilst generation of this high-volume waste is initiated from the very first phase of extraction, various forms of it continue to be generated during the subsequent phases, right until extraction and beneficiation of minerals. Comprising chiefly of overburden material, mine water, slurry and tailings, the composition of these wastes is entirely dependent on the type of mine being exploited. Waste rock or overburden is the rock material that needs to be removed in order to reach the economic mineral of interest. Its quantity therefore depends on the mining technique adopted as well as the location of the ore body in the earth’s crust. Mine water, also a waste resulting from mining activities, is a reservoir of potentially contaminating chemicals that tend to concentrate, as a result of increased percolation, with an increase in mining activities. Slurry and tailings tend to be formed post processing of the mined ore during the mineral extraction process, the disposal of which today is one of the biggest environmental concern. Usually fine grained and mud like, they comprise ground rock and process effluents which are mostly toxic and which essentially require chemical treatment prior to disposal. Developments in engineering and technology have today opened up newer ways for disposal or alternate uses of these wastes mostly by rendering them inert. What however remains is the strategic and financial will to adopt these novel technologies towards a sustainable future.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute of Miners’ Health, Nagpur, India

    Nikhil P. Kulkarni

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geology, Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University, Nagpur (MH), India

    Kirtikumar Randive

  2. Regional Occupational Health Centre (Southern), National Institute of Occupational Health, Bengaluru (KA), India

    Shubhangi Pingle

  3. Jawaharlal Nehru Aluminium Research, Development, and Design Centre, Nagpur (MH), India

    Anupam Agnihotri

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Kulkarni, N.P. (2021). Mineral and Mining Wastes: A Burgeoning Problem with a Need for Sustainable Restitution. In: Randive, K., Pingle, S., Agnihotri, A. (eds) Innovations in Sustainable Mining. Earth and Environmental Sciences Library. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-73796-2_13

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