With telemetry and cloud-based storage, automated vibrating wire piezometers (VWPs) are transforming the management of tailings storage facilities (TSFs) through real-time data.
For every action, there is a reaction. So goes the saying. Come to think of it. It took the catastrophic failure of a tailings storage facility in Brumadinho, Brazil, in January 2019 for the world's consciousness to be awakened to the importance of effective TSF monitoring solutions.
The Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM)
Accordingly, in 2020, The Global Tailings Review (GTR) launched the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM), which aims to mitigate the risk of tailings dam failures. The GRC was convened under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the Principal for Responsible Investments (PRI) and the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM).
In the paper, they bring to light the need for accurate pore pressure measurement. "The pore regime, material strength parameters, and geometry of a Tailings Storage Facility (TSF) influence its stability, often expressed as a Factor of Safety (FoS). Of these variables, pore pressure is the most likely to change in temporal and spatial variance within a relatively short time, which will have a significant impact on the FoS of the facility."
