A Quantitative Sustainability Assessment for Mine Closure and Repurposing Alternatives in Colorado, USA

Abstract

Responsible mine closure and repurposing are key to contributing to sustainable development by ensuring successful environmental rehabilitation and reducing socioeconomic risks. However, mine closure has primarily focused on remediation and rehabilitation of mined lands with limited consideration of stakeholder perspectives and the broader social, economic, and cultural impacts of closure. In this paper, we use stakeholder input to evaluate and compare three different repurposing alternatives for the tailings dam area of a mine in the state of Colorado, USA, which is expected to close in the next twenty years. By using multi-attribute utility theory (MAUT), we determine which alternative better reflects stakeholder preferences and results in the most economically, environmentally, and socially sustainable outcome. Our results show that although stakeholder groups have different ideas about what constitutes sustainable development in the context of mine closure and repurposing, it is possible to identify to what extent different scenarios can address these perspectives. We argue that integrating stakeholder views into mine closure design and repurposing can lead to more responsible and sustainable mine closure that is unique to a particular setting and stakeholder needs, and we provide a methodology that mining companies may use to understand stakeholder priorities and preferences.

A multi-criteria decision framework to evaluate sustainable alternatives for repurposing of abandoned or closed surface coal mines

“…Numerous MCDM methods and techniques are available, including the weighted sum model (Odu, 2019), the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) (Saaty, 2008), the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) (Behzadian et al, 2012), the analytic network process (ANP) (Saaty, 2005), the preference ranking organization method for enrichment evaluations (PROMETHEE) (Brans and Mareschal, 2005), and many more. Using multi-attribute utility theory (MAUT), researchers at the Henderson Mill and Mine (Colorado, United States) determined which alternative best reflects stakeholder preferences and results in the most sustainable outcome out of glass manufacturing of tailings, organic shrimp farming, and hemp production (Demirkan et al, 2022). A mined land suitability analysis (MLSA) by Soltanmohammadi et al (2010) used a combination of AHP and TOPSIS to rank different land-use alternatives based on multiple criteria for a hypothetical mined land.…”

“…A good mine closure plan should begin early in the development process and be updated regularly. The company should plan the mine closure in a way that ensures the quality of the affected area is restored or enhanced while maintaining and increasing the benefits generated by the operation (Demirkan et al, 2022). Mine closure is usually applicable to closed, abandoned, or discontinued mines, as shown in Figure 1.…”

Utilization of Palm Oil Fuel Ash (POFA) as an Admixture for the Synthesis of a Gold Mine Tailings-Based Geopolymer Composite

“…A promising workaround to this problem is to passivate sulfide minerals during repurposing using alkali activation or geopolymerization. This technique is receiving a lot of attention because of its (i) lower carbon footprint compared with conventional concrete-based technologies [22], (ii) large waste reductions achieved by material repurposing [23] and (iii) immobilization of toxic elements inherently found in mine tailings [24,25].…”