The Anatomy of a Mine - Mining and the Environment: From Ore to Metal - page 211

FIGURE 4.20
The Chatree Gold Mine in Thailand

The Chatree Gold Mine has a
particularly small footprint with all
facilities - open pit mine, processing
plant, waste rock dumps, and tailing
storage - all situated in close proximity.

Storage
A mine operation consumes a large amount of diesel fuel, oil, and other materials. Large
diesel fuel storage facilities are required if the mine operates diesel generator power plants.
Depending on the benei ciation process, a wide range of chemicals are stored at the port
and mill site. Efl uent treatment facilities may require storage of additional chemicals.
Coal storage areas not only exist in coal mining, but also in metal mining where there is an
integrated coal-i red power plant.
Environmental concerns related to material storage are accidental release of stored mate-
rials, and contaminated runoff or leachate. Environmental controls include the provision of
sealed ground surface, shelter, secondary containment, leak detection equipment, runoff col-
lection drains with associated settlement ponds, or ground water monitoring wells.

Environmental concerns related
to material storage are accidental
release of stored materials, and
contaminated runoff or leachate.

Mine Town
Whether or not to construct a new town to accommodate the project workforce is often a
difi cult decision for proponents of new mine developments. Many factors are involved,
including:
●

the wishes of local landholders and other stakeholders;

●

the presence of existing towns in reasonable proximity to the planned operations, and
the capacity of these towns to accommodate that part of the workforce which cannot
be recruited locally ( Figure 4.20 );

●

the likely scale and duration of the project; and

●

government policies; often, governments use resource development projects in remote
areas to contribute to the overall development of the regions involved.

Where existing towns are available within reasonable proximity, using these to accommodate
mine employees should be given serious consideration. Reasonable proximity will depend on
circumstances but would typically mean within about 40 km. The workforce could be domi-
ciled by and obtain services from the existing communities which, if well planned, should
bring benei ts to both the workforce and the communities. The reality is, however, that the
mine is often located in a physically hostile setting too far from major settlements to com-
mute to and from work on a daily basis. Furthermore if housing facilities do exist, they are

Where existing towns are
available within reasonable
proximity, using these to
accommodate mine employees
should be given serious
consideration.