Featured Project
Cover System Performance in a Semi-Arid Climate on Horizontal and Sloped Waste Rock Surfaces
BHP Billiton Iron Ore initiated a program in January, 1995 at their Mt. Whaleback operation in Newman, Western Australia to develop a decommissioning plan for the waste rock material.
The primary research program includes the development of technology for the long term performance of the waste rock dumps with respect to vegetation, slope stability, surface runoff, erosion, and water infiltration.
The project is evaluating the field performance of cover systems constructed on a horizontal and a sloped waste rock surface.
The cover system is constructed using suitable run-of-mine waste material to minimize closure costs.
Rainfall entering the waste material is buffered due to the presence of the cover material thereby significantly reducing net percolation to the underlying waste rock. The objective is to control acid rock drainage (ARD) by preventing moisture movement into and through the waste rock material.
Six years of field data illustrate low percolation rates to the underlying waste rock and key performance characteristics of the moisture store and release cover system design.
Field data collected to date demonstrates that a moisture store and release cover system constructed with suitable run-of-mine waste material has good potential as a final acid rock drainage control cover system at the Mt. Whaleback site.
The performance of the cover system on a sloped surface was significantly altered as compared to placing the cover system on a horizontal surface.
O'Kane, M. and Waters, P., 2003. Dry Cover Trials at Mt Whaleback – A Summary of Overburden Storage Area Cover System Performance. Proceedings of 6th International Conference for Acid Rock Drainage, Cairns, Qld., Australia, July 2003.
O'Kane, M., Porterfield, D.P., Weir, A., and Watkins, A.L., 2000. Cover System Performance in a semi-arid climate on horizontal and sloped waste rock surfaces. Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Acid Rock Drainage, May 21-24, 2000, Denver, Colorado.
O'Kane, M., Porterfield, D., and Weir, A., 1999. Pyritic Shale Integration into Waste Rock Management, Mt. Whaleback. 16th Annual National Conference, American Society for Surface Mining and Reclamation, August, 13-19, 1999, Scottsdale, Arizona.
Boldt-Leppin, B., O'Kane, M., and Haug, M.D., 1999. Soil Covers for Sloped Surface of Hazardous Waste Disposal Systems - Application of Fundamental Design Principles. Paper accepted to the Tailings and Mine Waste Conference, Fort Collins, Colorado, January 24 - 27, 1999, pp. 393-403.
O'Kane, M., Porterfield, D., Haug, M.D., Endersby, M., 1998. The Design and Implementation of the Field Test Plots at BHP Billiton Iron Ore, Mt. Whaleback - A Soil Cover System for an Arid Climate. 1998 SME Annual Meeting & Exhibit - March 9-11, Orlando, Florida.
Note: The Papers are in PDF format. Click here if you need Abode Acrobat Reader.
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