Why Clean Mining is the Future of Mining
Contributor:
Dallas Kachan
Posted: 10/03/2012 12:00:00 AM EDT | 2
Mining IQ: On a global scale, we’re seeing an increase in partnerships between mining companies and renewable and sustainable energy companies. What is driving this?
Posted: 10/03/2012 12:00:00 AM EDT | 2
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As we see the mining industry increasingly invest in renewable and sustainable energy sources, we often hear phrases like ‘green washing’ being thrown about.
Many others echo this view, claiming that miners’ interests in clean technologies are merely a passing trend and are used to give the impression they care about the environment.
However, Dallas Kachan, the executive director for the Clean Mining Alliance in Canada dispels such beliefs, saying that there is a “genuine need for mining companies to work on improving their environmental impacts”.
Mining IQ interviews Dallas Kachan on his thoughts on this rising phenomenon. In this Q&A, we ask Kachan why miners are investing in clean technologies, what factors are driving this and what we can expect in the near future.
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Mining IQ: On a global scale, we’re seeing an increase in partnerships between mining companies and renewable and sustainable energy companies. What is driving this?
Dallas Kachan: Some collaboration is being driven mining companies’ increased desire to evidence Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) objectives. As part of this, some mining operations are turning to modest renewable energy investments to supplement their environmental sustainability aspect of CSR. It also stemming from rising energy costs. Mining companies are finding that by supplementing power requirements with sustainable options like solar or wind, they are able to offset a percentage of their overall energy expenditures. However, it is important to note that intermittent renewable energy, in most cases, does not provide a substantial amount of the energy needed by mining operations.
What we as an organization are trying to accomplish is to bring visibility to the investments mining companies are beginning to make in cleantech beyond simply renewable energy. While renewable energy is a step in the right direction for mining operations, it will be technologies like water filtration, carbon capture, bioremediation and other developments to reduce toxicity that can be adapted into current and future mining practices that will have a bigger impact on how the industry impacts the surrounding environment.
Mining IQ: Are there any notable partnerships happening right now?
DK: Several mining companies are implementing renewable energy, either on their own or with a partner organization. In the last few years, Barrick has built the world’s highest altitude wind farm in Argentina and a solar farm in Nevada. In Canada, Vale has committed over $2 billion (CAD) in what it calls the Atmospheric Emissions Reductions Program (AER); this is one of the single largest financial commitments to environmental investment in Canadian history and is to see sulphur dioxide emissions at one of Vale's smelters reduced by 70% from current levels, as well as dust and metals emissions reduced a further 35 to 40%.
Even the United States Environmental Protection Agency sees the benefit of merging mining with renewable development. It released a report in December of 2011, which identified abandoned mine sites, of which they estimate there are between 80,000-250,000, as prime opportunities for solar energy farms.
Mining IQ: Is this trend towards ‘clean mining’ a fad or is there a real business rational driving the increased interest in sustainable energy?
DK: This won’t be a passing fad. There is a genuine need for mining companies to work on improving their environmental impacts. While shareholders and other stakeholders demand it, key business drivers are propelling new clean technology in mining. They are: increasing mine efficiency, decreasing operating expenditures and reducing permitting times. Each of those three factors means a better bottom line for the mining company, which is ultimately what motivates a company to adopt new standards and practices. Cleantech isn’t just the right thing to do for the planet; it’s the right thing to do for mining companies’ bottom lines.
Mining IQ: It appears that most of these partnerships are initiated by large, multinational mining companies. What about smaller miners? Do they risk getting left behind?
DK: While it seems like it is the larger mining companies that are experiencing the greatest growth in adopting new technology, in reality they are often the slowest to accept change. One of the biggest problems the mining industry faces with adopting new clean technology is that large mining operations are hesitant to change “normal” business practices without either being forced to, in the case of increased environmental regulations, or without a proven case model. It’s often the junior mining operations that are taking the risks in adopting clean technology innovations with the hope that it will pay off in the long term. This is where disruptive innovation will happen, in our opinion. Small juniors may emerge as the proving grounds for breakthroughs that will then be adopted by larger companies once they’ve been de-risked.
Take for example one of our founding members, American Manganese. The company has staked its business model on a modified hydrometallurgical process first experimented with decades ago. Admittedly, its capital expenditures are higher cost than other manganese operations, but the company believes its benefits outweigh the higher initial costs. The company is targeting producing higher quality chemical and electrochemical manganese dioxides (CMD and EMD), with a minimal environmental footprint, minimal energy needs, and in the end at a much lower cost than the competition. That type of investment risk would be unlikely with a larger mining operation, but if proven successful, this could become a base case model for producing better quality manganese in a more responsible manner.
Mining IQ: What can smaller miners do to make the transition into clean energy? What advice do you have for smaller companies that are looking to invest in such partnerships?
DK: The first thing to remember is that this isn’t a simple overnight decision. There is a lot of planning involved with adopting a clean technology into a mining operation, or forming a partnership to do so. Smaller companies need to be prepared for the work, and associated risk involved. Raising more capital than you expect you’ll need is important—these initiatives have higher capital expenses for the promise of lower long term operating expenses. Budgeting for extra time to work out the kinks in a new process is also advised; there are bound to be unforeseen challenges with adopting new technology.
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Shareholders should also be made aware of the decision to adopt cleaner mining practices. The mining industry and its shareholders, aren’t always used to the changes and work needed. A shareholder should be given full understanding of how the company plans to operate so they can make an educated decision and prepare for the possibility of unexpected cost increases or development delays.
Mining IQ: In five years’ time, do you foresee an increase in the number of clean mining partnerships? How will this pan out over time?
DK: Look for cleantech to absolutely revolutionize mining in the next 5 years. We anticipate an increase, and an interest in, new technology for all aspects of the mining industry. Desalination both as an alternative water source and to extract minerals from seawater is making headway right now. So is the use of bioremediation, like using bacteria, fungus or insects to minimize metallic impurities or remediate tailings of past operations. New materials innovations could bring lower energy, and therefore lower cost, alternatives to flotation separation, and crushing could be made more energy efficient from new breakthroughs. It’s an exciting time to be watching for mining tech innovation!
What are your thoughts? How do you see clean technologies and miners working together? What will be the challenges ahead? Share your thoughts in the comments box below.
Photo Credits: CC Image courtesy of Thinkpanama and Living Off Grid on Flickr
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Contributor:
Dallas Kachan |
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Clean mining can be the future of the mining industry as it provides an opportunity for a sustainable resurgence from using waste materials from quarry fines, mine tailings and even coal fly ash with new technologies such as hot forging these hidden assets. For instance, see http://www.ceramicindustry.com/articles/92838-hot-forging-process
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Great interview. Bioremediation is a particularly interesting field of study - glad it was mentioned! Canada in many ways is ahead of the curve when it comes to cleantech in mining & we are proud of this!
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