The Range of Environmental Concerns - Mining and the Environment: From Ore to Metal - page 556

FIGURE 13.16
Safety Hazards Illustrated

Special attention is required during
mine closure to avoid unsafe surface
openings and access to underground
voids.

While major accidents in the mining industry are relatively uncommon, given the
number of global mining operations, they do occur. Any single major accident can be
detrimental to public perception of a mine operation and the industry as a whole. Risks
from tailings dams have drawn particular attention, following failures at mines in Europe
and elsewhere (for discussion of tailings management and inherent risks see Chapter
Eighteen). Accidents involving facilities or activities other than tailings disposal also occur,
but they appear to be less frequent or to attract less attention. A review of incidents in the
gold industry since 1975, reveals that 72% of the incidents involved tailings dams, while
14% involved pipe failure and 14% represented transport accidents (UNEP 2000). All such
incidents have the potential to cause serious environmental and health effects.
Major tailings storage accidents seem to occur on average once each year and they can
have serious consequences for the environment, human health and property, and the i nan-
cial health of the mining company involved. The physical properties of i ne-grained mine
waste particles are frequently such that, when saturated with water and subjected to stress,
they liquefy, in some cases giving rise to devastating mud l ows, such as those at Aberfan
and Stava which claimed 412 human lives between them (Panman 1998).
As for managing all environmental impacts, preparedness and planning for emer-
gencies is the best safeguard against accidental environmental impacts. An initiative by
UNEP (2001) led to preparation of a widely accepted guide to emergency response termed
APELL (Awareness and Preparedness for Emergencies at Local Level), a process devel-
oped in conjunction with the mining industry, communities, and governments. APELL
was prepared in response to various industrial accidents in both developed and developing
countries, which resulted in adverse impacts on the environment and local communities.
The aim of APELL is to help prevent, prepare for and respond to technological accidents
and emergencies (UNEP 2001).

Preparedness and planning for
emergencies is the best safeguard
against accidental environmental
impacts.

13.10 URANIUM MINING - A SPECIAL CASE

Over the last 30 years, Canada has emerged as the world's leading uranium producer, largely
because of the extraordinarily rich uranium deposits found in Northern Saskatchewan, and