Mine waste or future resource? Integrating industrial ecology thinking into a mining project Éléonore Lèbre Master of Science in Industrial Ecology, Master of Science in Engineering A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at The University of Queensland in 2018 Sustainable Minerals Institute Abstract Growing demand for natural resources coupled with declines in ore grades globally are increasing the environmental footprint of the extractive industry, in particular through higher energy and water consumption and waste generation. There are a variety of sustainability frameworks that have been designed for the mining industry and each of these define principles and strategies to improve the industry’s sustainability performance. However, most of these frameworks are missing a key characteristic related to the fundamentally different nature of mining compared with other industrial activities: the mineral resource itself. An important contribution to sustainable development by mining projects is the way they manage to maximise value and minimise waste from ore deposits, each deposit having its own unique properties. Industrial ecology (IE) is a multidisciplinary field of research that studies the flows and stocks of material and energy within society, and their impact on the environment, with the aim of designing more sustainable production and consumption systems. This thesis applies industrial ecology ideas and tools to the metal mining industry, and focuses on flows of mineralised material, observing the causes and consequences of mineral losses occurring at the mine site level. The IE framework developed has three main levels of analysis. The first level focuses on mine waste management. Mine waste management practices were reviewed and assessed in terms of whether they inhibit or enable future mineral resource recovery, or any other value creation from the local mineralised material. A new Mine Waste Management Hierarchy ‘reduce – reprocess – downcycle – dispose’ was developed in accordance with principles of waste minimisation and value maximisation, and illustrated with examples from reported practices as well as academic research. In order to connect better the mine waste management system with the rest of the mine’s metabolism, the second level of the framework proposes a set of Material Flow Accounting (MFA) indicators, which provides a general view of the site’s internal mineral flows. This set places a particular emphasis on quantifying mineral losses, which occur through different dissipative mechanisms, and with an evaluation on whether these losses are irreversible or potentially recoverable. 2 The MFA indicators have been applied on two case studies in Australia: the former gold and now abandoned mine, Mount Morgan in Queensland, and the copper mine, Mount Lyell in Tasmania. As both mine sites have had long histories, they have hosted several mining ventures whose performances have been assessed and compared using the MFA indicators. Comparisons of the different mining ventures at each case study site allowed for identifying the conditions for prolonging the life of mining operations and increasing mineral recovery, either from the ore deposit itself or by recycling mining waste. Such outcomes are desirable from a sustainability perspective in the sense that they take into account both the exhaustibility of a non-renewable resource and the need to minimise environmental impacts of mineral-rich waste material. The MFA results also allow for quantifying the consequences of unplanned and incomplete closures, long-term interruptions in operations and poor waste management, which have all contributed to exacerbating mineral losses. The third and last level focuses on the role of governments in relation to the two case study sites. In particular, it was found that governments have a significant role to play, and this was demonstrated through the strengthening of environmental regulations over the past century, which has led to reduced mineral losses. However, the Queensland and Tasmanian governments’ regulatory frameworks still could be improved in order to prevent or better control the consequences of premature closures of mining projects. This would require stronger links between the relevant environmental protection and mining state government departments. Using the Mine Waste Management Hierarchy as base principles for best practices in mine waste management, and using the MFA indicators to assess the performance of mining projects during the approval process could both inform policy-makers on potential ways to improve the current regulatory systems and help stimulate a positive change in mining practices. 3 Declaration by author This thesis is composed of my original work, and contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference has been made in the text. I have clearly stated the contribution by others to jointly-authored works that I have included in my thesis. I have clearly stated the contribution of others to my thesis as a whole, including statistical assistance, survey design, data analysis, significant technical procedures, professional editorial advice, financial support and any other original research work used or reported in my thesis. The content of my thesis is the result of work I have carried out since the commencement of my higher degree by research candidature and does not include a substantial part of work that has been submitted to qualify for the award of any other degree or diploma in any university or other tertiary institution. I have clearly stated which parts of my thesis, if any, have been submitted to qualify for another award. I acknowledge that an electronic copy of my thesis must be lodged with the University Library and, subject to the policy and procedures of The University of Queensland, the thesis be made available for research and study in accordance with the Copyright Act 1968 unless a period of embargo has been approved by the Dean of the Graduate School. I acknowledge that copyright of all material contained in my thesis resides with the copyright holder(s) of that material. Where appropriate I have obtained copyright permission from the copyright holder to reproduce material in this thesis and have sought permission from co-authors for any jointly authored works included in the thesis. 4 Publications during candidature Peer-reviewed papers: - Lèbre, É. and G. Corder. 2015. Integrating Industrial Ecology Thinking into the Management of Mining Waste. Resources, 4, 765-786. - Lèbre, É., G. D. Corder, and A. Golev. 2016. Sustainable practices in the management of mining waste: A focus on the mineral resource. Minerals Engineering, 107, 34–42. - Lèbre, É., G. D. Corder, and A. Golev. 2017. The role of the mining industry in a circular economy: a framework for resource management at the mine site level. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 21, 3, 662–672. AusIMM Bulletin article, co-authored: - Corder, G. D., A. Golev, and É. Lèbre. 2016. The contribution of mining to the emerging circular economy. The AusIMM Bulletin. https://www.ausimmbulletin.com/feature/the- contribution-of-mining-to-the-emerging-circular-economy/ Conference papers: - Lèbre, É. 2015. ‘Mine waste or potential future resource: integrating Industrial Ecology thinking into a mine project’, in World Resources Forum AsiaPacific, Wealth from Waste: Resource Productivity and Innovations, 1-3 June 2015, Sydney, Australia. - Lèbre, É. 2015. ‘Mine waste or potential future resource: integrating Industrial Ecology thinking into a mine project’, in ISIE conference 2015: Taking Stock of Industrial Ecology, 7-10 July 2015, University of Surrey, Guildford, UK. - Lèbre, É. 2015. ‘Forging a sustainable future in mining: a new approach to the management of mining waste’, in SMI RHD conference 2015, 4 December 2015, Sustainable Minerals Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. - Lèbre, É. 2016. ‘Sustainable practices in the management of mining waste: A focus on the mineral resource’, in Sustainable Minerals conference 2016, 22-24 June 2016, Falmouth, UK. - Lèbre, É. 2016. ‘The role of the mining industry in a circular economy: a framework for resource management at the mine site level’, in Life-of-Mine conference 2016, 28-30 September 2016, Brisbane, Australia. - Lèbre, É., Golev, A. 2016. ‘The role of the mining industry in a circular economy: a framework for resource management at the mine site level’, in The International Society for 5 Industrial Ecology (ISIE) Joint 12th Socio-Economic Metabolism section conference and 5th Asia-Pacific conference, 28-30 September 2016, Nagoya, Japan. - Lèbre, É, Corder, G and Golev, A 2017. 'Towards sustainable practices in the mining industry - material flow indicators to model a metal mine's metabolism and inform policy- making', in ISIE-ISSST 2017: Science in Support of Sustainable and Resilient Communities, 25-29 June 2017, Chicago, Il, USA. Publications included in this thesis Lèbre, É, Corder, G and Golev, A 2017. 'Towards sustainable practices in the mining industry - material flow indicators to model a metal mine's metabolism and inform policy- making', in ISIE-ISSST 2017: Science in Support of Sustainable and Resilient Communities, 25-29 June 2017, Chicago, Il, USA. – incorporated in Abstract. Contributor Statement of contribution Author Éléonore Lèbre Conception and design (80%) Analysis and interpretation (80%) Drafting and production (100%) Author Glen Corder Conception and design (10%) Analysis