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Mining Subscribes to Murphy?s Law Personal observations on the past ?Perfect, benign deposit mines can be screwed up-spills and concentrate handling issues ?Long term contamination and water management assessments inadequate ?The ?permitting mentality? and its effects on the application of proponent and regulator resources ?Reliance on simple principles but nature and chemistry is more complex

May 1, 2010

By F. J. MacPherson, A. C. Caron

"Cassiar Asbestos Corporation Limited is at present B,C.'s only asbestos mining company, and has been actively engaged in the management and operation of the Cassiar Mine since the early 1950's. The Cassiar operations are located between 3,500' and 6,600' elevation in a secluded mountainous area of northern B.C., approximately 100 miles by road southwest of Watson Lake in the Yukon Territory. Climatic conditions in this area range from mild warm in the summer, to extremely cold during the long winter period.The minesite itself is located over a mile above sea level at the top of McDame Mountain, where year round 24 hours per day miners extract the chrysotile ore from the surrounding waste by standard open pit techniques. The ore body dips into the mountain at about a 45° angle, and as the mining progresses, larger stripping ratios are required. Waste to ore ratio this year will be more than 10 to l whereas only a few years ago ratios of 3 or 4 to l were possible. After drilling, blasting, and loading by shovel onto trucks, the asbestos ore is transported to the Primary Crushing Plant for crushing prior to transport by aerial tramway more than three miles to the Concentrator and Mill in the valley below, where the fibre is extracted from the barren host rock serpentine and milled into numerous grades for shipment to asbestos users round the world. The major air usage is associated with the milling process, presently requiring over 500,000 CFM, with future requirements expected to exceed 840,000 CFM by the end of the decade."

Jan 1, 1976

By H. J. McQueen

Before 1950, hot working was simply deforming above the recrystallization point and gave a soft product compared to cold working. From 1960 onwards, improved testing in compression and torsion (stress, strain rate, temperature, quenching) provided valid specimens for microstructural analysis by polarized optical and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Indeed, TEM was essential to uncovering the hot working mechanisms because it could distinguish between cold and hot substructures (dynamic recovery) in either initial or new grains (dynamic recrystallization). Over the years, teams at Concordia, McGill and UBC obtained NSERC support for students and equipment. CANMET built up a hot forming group having capabilities from high-rate cam-plastometer compression to rolling of experimental alloy billets; this was combined with latest metallographic instruments for fundamental research. Al alloys of every class (2000, 3000, 5000, 7000, 8000) were studied to understand the effects of solutes, precipitates, dispersoids and composites. The complex flow patterns in extrusion were clarified and modeled by finite element methods. Physical simulations of rolling schedules (up to 20 passes and reductions of 98%) by torsion provided evidence of microstructure development during both the passes and the softening intervals, thus clarifying development of texture in different alloys. The results frequently appeared in proceedings of Light Metals symposia and Canadian Metallurgical Quarterly

Jan 1, 2011

By Jean Vavrek, Rob Barber

"What is CIM’s role on a planet-wide scale?That question has been coming back to the forefront of many discussions regularly in the months since we came on board as Executive Director and Vice- President International. CIM, by its name and by the nature of its history and make up, has mainly been a Canadian entity. It has been created by an act of Canadian Parliament and it is set up to work within the Canadian federal and provincial framework.Yet the name CIM is one well known and recognized for quality and professionalism worldwide. One could say that CIM has established a level of brand recognition that transcends it name and its origin. CIM has also evolved with the times, as the world has evolved and more so as the world of mining has evolved. So we stand today with a fairly large portion of our membership residing outside Canada and outside the United States. We also stand today looking back at the role CIM has played in events that we have been partners in organizing outside Canada; and for a long time CIM has provided insights into what is going on in the rest of the mining world by inviting authors and by featuring topics from around the globe.Today, Canada is still a leader in the mining industry. Canadian mining companies are involved in exploration and operations around the world. Canadian operations serve a good portion of the global demand of many metals and minerals, recently adding diamonds to the slate. Canadian expertise in various areas also makes Canada a good base for exporting a wide range of products and services around the world."

Jan 1, 2004

The Beginning ! The status quo simply isn?t sustainable ! Our social license is at risk ! The bar keeps rising ? We must improve our performance, both operational and social ? We must improve stakeholder judgement of our industry by taking action collectively Implementing TSM " TSM Guiding Principles " Performance Indicators " Crisis communications " External Outreach " Tailings management " Energy management " Performance manuals, guides " Reporting " Communities of Interest Advisory Panel

May 1, 2004

By Michel Rodrigue, Sylvain Duchesne, Louis Racine

"LocationThe Louvicourt mine is located 20 km east of Val d'Or in Abitibi, in the northwest part of the province of Quebec. The mine is located on Highway 117 connecting Val d'Or to Montreal and very close to the main railway networkHistoryFive successive exploration attempts by Aur Resources resulted in the discovery of the large Louvicourt orebody in June 1989. Construction of the surface and underground infrastructures commenced in the spring of 1991. Milling operations commenced in July 1994. The entire project cost CDN$290 million, almost CDN$20 million less than initially estimated. The concentrator infrastructure cost CDN$64 million.Louvicourt mine is owned in partnership by Novicourt Inc. (45%), Teck Corporation (25%), and Aur Resources Inc., the administrator (30%).Brief DescriptionLouvicourt mine is the largest producer of base metals (Cu and Zn) in Abitibi-Temiscamingue. Its average daily production is nearly 4300 t of ore, for an annual production of 200 000 t of copper concentrate (28% Cu) and 33 000 t of zinc concentrate (57% Zn). After only a few weeks of operation, it had attained its objectives for the most part, and operations continue to be improved."

Jan 1, 2000

By Jane Spooner

"The papers presented in this edition of the Bulletin cover some of the business issues that face mining companies exploring or operating in jurisdictions outside Canada. While technical innovations may, generally, be seen as fast-moving and farreaching, these papers also show that changes in approach and thinking continue to be evaluated and implemented.The Forum paper co-authored by Roger Taplin of McCarthy Tétrault LLP and Marchand Snyman of Muratie Investments Pty Ltd. highlights the quite radical changes that have taken place in South Africa’s mining industry with the introduction of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, 2002, in October of that year, together with the Broad-based Socio-Economic Empowerment Charter for the South African Mining Industry and the Mineral and Petroleum Royalty Bill of March 2003."

Jan 1, 2004

By Jean Vavrek

What is CIM?s role on a planet-wide scale? That question has been coming back to the forefront of many discussions regularly in the months since we came on board as Executive Director and Vice-President International. CIM, by its name and by the nature of its history and make up, has mainly been a Canadian entity. It has been created by an act of Canadian Parliament and it is set up to work within the Canadian federal and provincial framework.

Feb 1, 2004

By D. O. Downing

"The 1990s saw enormous changes in the Canadian coal industry and the future promises to be no less turbulent. While the markets served by Canadian coal producers have changed and buying practices continue to evolve, the coal mining, or supply side, has also changed remarkably in response and now provides the basis for an interesting industry story.The dynamic situation in coal mining has led to some surprising outcomes and seemingly contradictory developments. This paper outlines the changes that have occurred, and which are still unfolding in Canadian coal mining, firstly, in terms of mining technology and productivity, secondly, in terms of corporate divestments, acquisitions and bankruptcies, and finally, in terms of resource development. The paper also outlines some plausible futures for the industry looking ahead."

Jan 1, 2002

By W. S. Dyer

Considerable attention has been paid in recent years to the fire-clay and silica-sand deposits of the Mattagami and Missinaibi rivers and ? to the lignite occurring in them. The fireclay especially deserves this attention; it is of first-class quality; it appears to be widespread; it is the only fire-clay in central Canada, and part of it lies not more than 20 miles west of Coral rapids, to which point steel will be laid this coming spring by the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario railway. Undoubtedly, these clays will rapidly find a place in industry. The fire-clays and the better grades of silica-sand are Mesozoic in age and have been referred to the Lower Cretaceous or Upper Jurassic. Glacial clays and sands and Palaeozoic shales also occur in the same region, but are of little economic value, and will not be dealt with in this paper. Dr. Robert Bell was perhaps the first to discover the clays, since in the Report of Progress of the Geological Survey of Canada for 1877 and 1878 he reported beds of lignite on Coal brook, a tributary of the Missinaibi river, underlain by sticky clay and overlain by glacial drift. In 1880 E. B. Borron (1) discovered an extensive deposit of white sand and clay on the east bank of the Missinaibi river, five miles below Coal brook, and in 1890 (2) he examined the deposit found by Dr. Bell on Coal brook. He recognized that the underlying clays were quite distinct from the glacial clays of the region, and suggested that they might be used for fire-brick if metallurgical operations were undertaken in the region. Somewhat later, J. M: Bell described a deposit of fire-clay and silica-sand on the Wabiskagami river, another tributary of the Missinaibi.

Jan 1, 1928

By M. Mirnezami, D. Lascelles, J. A. Finch, E. El-Ammouri

"Aggregation, i.e., the tendency of particles to cluster, can be expected to influence flotation selectivity. In this paper, a method of measuring aggregation is introduced and used to conduct plant surveys.Aggregation is measured using settling rate and turbidity converted to an aggregation index (AI) where 0 corresponds to most dispersed and 1 to most aggregated over the range of conditions tested, normally pH. Surveys of Cu and Zn flotation stages at four concentrators showed the AI increased significantly above pH 9. The metal ions identified in the process waters, principally Ca and Mg, were tested to determine which might be responsible. The presence of Mg was found to be the most important. In doping tests, Mg was shown to cause significant variation in AI over the pH range of 9 to 12.The impact of Mg was restricted to pH > 9. Over this pH range, Mg forms a range of hydroxy species, including Mg(OH)2 precipitates. An aggregation mechanism associated with these precipitates, electrostatic bridging, is suggested. Possible problems and opportunities in flotation practice arising from the findings are discussed."

Jan 1, 2002

By J. Paraszczak

For mining companies facing strong international competition and unfavourable commodities’ prices, automation of underground operations has the potential to increase productivity and help cut costs. However, despite considerable technological progress in this field, there still remain many problems to overcome. Furthermore, successful implementation of automation depends also on numerous operational, organizational, and even human factors. In this context, this paper briefly reviews technological progress with regard to different underground operations. Following that, several issues related to implementation of automated equipment and systems are presented and discussed. Particular emphasis is put on the factors whose importance is often underestimated. Some recommendations in this respect are also given. It is stated that the success of an automation project is a function of many “winning conditions,” which may be created through very thorough planning and preparation. It is also underlined that despite achievements made, a vision of a man-less underground mine is not yet as much a matter of near future as it may seem.

Jan 1, 2004

By K. R. Coulter

"Good morning gentlemen. I am very pleased to have this opportunity to tell you a few of the things that happen within a completely unrelated activity, the electroplating industry, except that it does consume metals and has some slight similarity of problems so far as cyanide is concerned.First, just a few general terms about the industry. It is a relatively unsophisticated industry technically, and in many instances there are serious problems in obtaining staff that can operate the various systems that are currently available for destroying cyanide or precipitating metals.I would suggest to you that if you are investigating any system that you consider very seriously the personnel that are actually going to run it. The installation people; probably have some idea what it is all about but the operators must be chosen for their ability and not because they just happen to be available.We perhaps have another area in common. There is very little money for capital expenditures that produce no immediate return or even eventual return on the investment.The industry is largely made up of ""Jobbers"" who are strictly electroplating. There is another group in which the electroplating is captive as in large companions where it is a convenience operation. Also there are specialists, who do other things besides plating but it is a very major part of their operation. This applies to the automotive parts industry.Cyanide applications in the plating industry will be for copper, zinc, cadmium, silver, brass, and gold. Cyanide waste solutions come from those solutions adhering to the plated parts, and from the occasional discharge of the plating bath solutions. Also, in a related industry, the heat treating people with cyanide case hardening have some high concentrations of cyanide to dispose of. Concentrations of cyanide that we treat are 2500 parts per million or higher especially in wastes from heat treating. Solution volumes might be as low as 100 gallons per hour in a well run, carefully operated rinsing system. It may be as high as 3000 gallons per hour where dilution occurs."

Jan 1, 1973

By L. H. Michaud

"Albian Sands Energy (ASE), an oil sands surface mining and extraction operation, is currently undergoing start-up and is scheduled to ramp-up to full production by mid-2003. Startup includes the selection and implementation of over 75 IT systems or computer applications which include: engineering applications; systems required to control mining activities, maintenance, the processing plant and utilities; and also systems required to run the company, such as human resources, finances and inventory/ warehousing.This paper outlines the processes used for the selection, implementation and integration of these systems in order to optimize the use of information and to meet the technical, business and IT requirements of the company. The first step in ASE’s approach to identifying system requirements is the development of a business activity model, outlining all tasks involved in running the operations. The computer applications required to accomplish each task are then identified by having the IT team work closely with each technical and business unit. Historically, at some companies, the selection of systems has been led by the IT team or by consultants, with little input from the technical or business units. Typically, this results in products that do not meet the company’s expectations. To ensure a more positive outcome, ASE believes that it is imperative that the company’s technical and business people be closely involved in the selection process.Integration of the IT systems is also key, including linking all applications through a data warehouse and EDMS. Over 120 required integrations have been identified. This ensures the storage of all data in only one location, data security, and easy data and document retrieval for all requirements throughout the company"

Jan 1, 2003

By G. Auld

"A simple method is presented whereby the additional quantity and static pressure necessary to compensate for ventilation duct leakage may be estimated using the circular reference functions of modern spreadsheets. Favourable comparisons have been made to the National Coal Board (United Kingdom) design charts and to a case study analysis. IntroductionIn mining, most ducted systems are applied to the development of access tunnels, and most of these systems leak to some extent. When the ventilation duct fails to deliver the required quantity of air to the work place, there is a significant contribution to the development costs, either directly or indirectly.Directly — More air and more pressure are required to compensate for the leakage, more capital development (ventilation shafts, parallel drives) are required because ventilation systems cannot push the fresh air far enough, and longer re-entry times to ensure toxic blast fumes to be diluted.Indirectly — There is a reduction in productivity because of the inclement atmospheric conditions, and/or closure of development ends because of unacceptable atmospheric conditions at the working place. This has been exacerbated over the last few decades because of the increased use of diesel equipment of ever increasing power, and the more stringent Occupational Health and Safety requirements demanding more air flow per kilowatt of diesel power.The leakage from a duct must, therefore, be reliably estimated in order to assess the effectiveness and construction of the system; assess the effectiveness of the maintenance or repair of the duct; appreciate the cost of the leakage, and therefore apply effective maintenance and installation procedures; and engineer safer, healthier and more cost-effective ventilation systems."

Jan 1, 2002

By Arthur D. FitzGerald

EDC established an Environmental Review Framework in 1999. Throughout the early fall of 2001, the Corporation held public consultations across Canada to strengthen that framework, leading to a public release on November 15, 2001 of a report summarising the results of these consultations. Following this, the Corporation implemented strengthened environmental review requirements in the form of its Environmental Review Directive, in compliance with legislated amendments to Canada?s Export Development Act that went into effect on December 21, 2001. Over the past few years, there has been a global trend towards an increase in the social and environmental requirements of multilateral/bilateral financial institutions and export credit agencies. More recently, this activity has focussed on capturing institutions that have not yet adopted similar requirements and, more specifically, on developing a convergence of the requirements from institution to institution. This paper describes EDC?s new ERD and some of the initiatives that have taken place or are in process that are moving international financial institutions toward converging their environmental and social requirements for projects in the private sector.

May 1, 2002

By J. W. Austin

"Introduction The Brenda dust collection system was originally designed to handle air at the 5000 ft. elevation with less than 1 grain of dust per cubic feet of air handled. The temperature variation is from 32°C in the summer to -20°C in the winter.DUST COLLECTIONOriginal Equipment 1. Primary Crusher 2 compartment baghouse, shaker type design capacity - 17,000 cfm2. Primary Screening 3 compartment baghouse, shaker type design capacity - 30,000 cfm3. Secondary Crusher 4 compartment baghouse, shaker type design capacity - 45,000 cfm4. Secondary Screening 4 compartment baghouse, shaker typedesign capacity - 60,000 cfmThe original dust collecting equipment was designed using a napped terylene fabric at an air to cloth ratio of 5:1. The ducting was designed to handle the dust laden air at 3200 ft. per minute with all elbows and blast gate sections rubber lined. The hoods and the pickup velocities were designed to handle the anticipated low dust counts."

Jan 1, 1976

By H. E. Pawson

"COMMON METHODS OF ELIMINATION: The four methods most frequently used to dispose of cyanide wastes are:1. Oxidation2. Dilution with water or with cyanide free wastes3. Acidification and dilution of resulting gas with air4. Alkaline ChlorinationMost operators practice a combination of the first two methods, allowing oxidation and dilution of cyanide waste in tailings ponds. Then, pond effluent is introduced to a stream for further dilution andoxidation which is expected to take care of the cyanide. This method oftreatment does work to a certain degree. Atmospheric oxidation in tailings ponds and in receiving streams chemically breaks down the cyanide radical to form carbon dioxide and nitrogen.2(CN) + 202 2 CO2 + N2The monetary advantage to this method is obvious to the operator but too frequently though, climatic conditions are ignored. Length of winter, and reduced flow of the receiving stream in summer, adversely restricts the result of this combined method. For those of us who rely mainly on dilution it would be wise to remember that 70 million pounds of water are required to dispose of one pound of sodium cyanide (1).The third method outlined involves addition of acid in a closed vessel and venting resulting gas to atmosphere with or without air dilution by mechanical means. Cost, safety and some form of secondary treatment to complete destruction of cyanide remaining in the solution usually make this method prohibitive.The alkaline chlorination method is the one most commonly accepted for treating cyanide bearing wastes since it is felt that cyanide is completely eliminated in this manner."

Jan 1, 1973

By Sydney C. Mifflen

COAL MINING, with its some 15,000 employees, is directly responsible for the livelihood of one-fifth of the population of the Province of Nova Scotia and indirectly so for that of possibly another fifth. Deposits of coal are known and worked in four counties of the Province, from which is being produced yearly tonnages as noted below: Cumberland County 750,000 tons Piccou County 400,000 tons Inverness County 100,000 tons Cape Breton County 5,250,000 tons TOTAL FOR NOVA SCOTIA 6,500,000 tons Production in Cape Breton county is entirely from the one source, the Sydney coalfield, and not only is this field the most important in respect to output, as is disclosed above, but it is also the largest presently known deposit in the Province and holds the greatest tonnage yet in reserve for future mining. In the light of the above more or less generally known facts, it is trite to remark on the importance of the Sydney coalfield in the internal economy of the Province. On the other hand, not nearly as well-known nor as frankly recognized is its significance in the national life of Canada, for from this field is produced not only 80 per cent of the Nova Scotia coal but over 40 per cent of all coal mined in the Dominion. Another noteworthy comparison can be made from the fact that the Sydney field contributes 22 per cent of all the bituminous coal consumed in Canada, the remainder being made up of 7 per cent mined elsewhere in Nova Scotia, 27 per cent from other parts of Canada (British Columbia and Alberta, principally), while the remaining 44 per cent is imported, practically wholly, from the United States of America.

Jan 1, 1941

By Knud Sinding

Environmental reporting by mining firms takes many forms and change frequently. The objective of these reports is related to increasing the legitimacy of mining firms with their diverse stakeholders. This study, focusing on internet-based reports, shows that there are considerable variations in reporting. This phenomenon is interesting because it belies the efforts pursued by leading industry members under iniatives such as the Global Mining Initiative and the Mining, Minerals and Sustainable Development project. The observed variation, both internally among reports and between reports and other industry policy statements, suggests that the industry needs to explore the possibilities for more convergence in terms of reporting quality. Based on theoretical constructs from the management literature we present a series of arguments defining necessary and sufficient conditions for durable and well-institutionalized reporting practices and standards.

May 1, 2002