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Reclamation and pollution control at a severely disturbed minesite in northern New Brunswick, Canada

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Abstract

This site in north-eastern New Brunswick, Canada, was developed as an open-pit copper mine in the early 1970s. The site was left in a severely disturbed state, contaminating the local drainage for over 10 years. Contamination to local runoff included low pH, high concentrations of lead, copper, zinc and iron and elevated concentrations of metals in general. Action taken to alleviate, the problems in the local drainage and establish a programme of site reclamation is described. The programme included water diversion, improvements in water quality control, site grading, material relocation and revegetation.

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References

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Further reading

  • Environment Canada,Base Metal Mine Waste Management in Northeastern New Brunswick, Environmental Impact and Assessment Report EPS8-WP-71-1, 55pp (1983).

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fox Consultants Inc., 710 Kipling Street, Suite 400, 80215, Denver, Colorado, USA

    R. D. Gwilym BSc, MES

Authors
  1. R. D. Gwilym BSc, MES
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Additional information

The author was employed as site coordinator for Anaconda's health, safety and environmental activities during the period when the programme described in this paper was undertaken.

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Gwilym, R.D. Reclamation and pollution control at a severely disturbed minesite in northern New Brunswick, Canada. Minerals and the Environment 6, 1–4 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02072659

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02072659

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