Decarbonisation to drive dramatic increase in mining waste–Options for reduction

Abstract

Global demand for energy transition metals is expected to lead to an intensification of mining activities and an increase in associated land disturbance and mine waste volumes. This paper forecasts global mine waste generation for four metals needed in batteries: copper, lithium, manganese, and nickel, and finds that waste volumes are likely to rise exponentially. Alternative extractive processes are required to achieve consequent waste reduction. Beneficial reduction outcomes include (1) smaller volumes and footprint area, (2) lower toxicity and chronic contamination, and (3) lower risk of catastrophic tailings dam failures. This paper reviews six mining and processing innovations that, if taken in combination, may achieve the needed reduction: mine waste (re)processing, environmental desulphurisation, dry-stacking and co-mingling, preconcentration and coarse particle flotation, ore-sand co-production, and in-situ recovery. None of these approaches can tackle the mine waste challenge individually, and the choice of method is site-dependent but, together, they provide promising alternatives to the current, increasingly wasteful mining practices.