The mining industry faces many challenges, including declining ore grades, increasingly stringent environmental regulations, and at times, political agencies opposed to mining. Nevertheless, the sector has responded to these pressures with a growing commitment to technological advancement and the pursuit of truly sustainable operations.
This focus has placed tailings storage facilities (TSFs) at the forefront of sustainable mining practices. New regulations now require not only the geotechnical stability and operational safety of these structures but also the creation of positive environmental outcomes in their surrounding areas.
What was once considered as mining waste is now being revalued as a potential resource. With advances in processing technologies and favorable market prices for key metals—particularly gold and silver—tailings have become a potential secondary reserve.
Tailings reprocessing thus becomes strategically important, offering the industry two fundamental opportunities:
Value recovery: enables the recovery of residual metal content, avoiding the full costs of primary mining and extending the economic life of the operations.
Risk mitigation and environmental improvement: offers the possibility in transforming liabilities into assets. Reprocessing supports construction of new TSFs built to higher engineering standards, with improved safety and reduced environmental impact.
However, reprocessing can present inherent complexity. The initial phase of excavating an existing tailings structure involves significant geotechnical challenges. In many cases, historical data on composition and compaction are incomplete, leading to an underestimation of the work required. It is essential to recognize that excessive loading, vibration, or improper mining methods can trigger structural failure and compromise safety.
At the metallurgical stage, reprocessing often requires ultra-fine regrinding technology to achieve efficient metal liberation from small particle sizes. This process demands a thorough analysis of the physical and chemical behavior of the reground tailings. When particle size is reduced substantially, not only are the valuable metals released, but other species may be liberated, potentially altering the material’s behavior in its new, secure storage facility.
Ultimately, successful reprocessing depends on careful attention to safety and integrity at every project stage. It represents a critical opportunity to transform existing TSFs into safer, more sustainable structures and leaving the environment in better condition.
