Home ⋅ Mining & Environment ⋅ What is MDAG? ⋅ Publishing & Downloads ⋅ Case Studies ⋅ Fractal 1/f Slopes ⋅ Library ⋅ Links ⋅ Contact Us ⋅ Search
MDAG.com: Online Since 1997
Providing Valuable Technical
Information on Minesite Drainage,
and on the Environmental Geochemistry
of Highly Reactive Geologic Materials
************************
The latest MDAG Case Study is:
MDAG Case Study 88: Dangerous Confusion in Canada on Water-Quality Guidelines and Criteria for Molybdenum.
Water-quality guidelines and crieria expressed in mg/L are simplified ways to estimate the toxicity of water. Danger can arise when water-quality guidelines for a certain element in a specific ecosystem differ by factors of thousands. In Canada, this is the case for molybdenum. Testing on humans has confirmed that aqueous concentrations higher than ~0.1-1.0 mg/L of molybdenum can lead to toxicity in humans, other animals, and vegetation, whereas aquatic life can tolerate orders of magnitude higher concentrations. Nevertheless, some governments and mining companies in Canada are contending that 30 to 460 mg/L of molybdenum are safe for all lifeforms that include humans, other animals, and vegetation. This could be deadly wrong.
************************
MDAG Case Study 87 with co-author Justin Lewis: Hydrogeology of a Small Underground Mine in Sparsely Fractured Volcaniclastic Rock in Steep Alpine Terrain.
An unprecedented study of the physical hydrogeology of a small underground mine in sparsely fractured volcaniclastic rock virtually surrounded on all sides by alpine glaciers. The primary objectives focused on (1) the hydraulic transmissivities and hydraulic conductivities of the fractured rock far from the underground mine and of the fractured and blasted rock surrounding the mine, based on drawdown and recovery data; (2) the relatively constant inflow rates of groundwater as the water level in the mine gradually fell and rose more than 20 m vertically by pumping, measured virtually meter by meter; and (3) the open and connected volumes of fractures and drillholes in the rock surrounding the underground mine, typically around 100-200 m3 for each 1 m height of rock.
************************
MDAG Case Study 86: Environmental Monitoring of Water Quality and Flow Has Fallen Behind at Minesites.
High-frequency monitoring of water quality and flow at minesites has fallen behind and is lagging the high-frequency monitoring at non-mining sites. No longer are there good technical or financial reasons for avoiding high-frequency monitoring at minesites, which can begin for a few thousands of dollars. And there are excellent reasons for high frequency, like monitoring reality at a site and avoiding environmentally dangerous misinterpretations due to low-frequency monitoring of highly dynamic environmental systems. It is now time for environmental monitoring at minesites to catch up to the rest of the world.
************************
MDAG Case Study 85: The Profound Enduring Ignorance of the Errors in Applying the Mann-Kendall Statistical Test to Minesite Drainage and Water Quality.
It is interesting to observe professionals propagate major errors when such errors are obvious even to non-professionals with some commonsense. Examples of this were provided in MDAG Case Studies 83 and 84, and continues here with Case Study 85. In most cases, the application of the various types of the Mann-Kendall statistical test to full-scale minesite drainage and water quality is an indication that the professional is not aware of, or is ignoring, the common errors of this statistical test. Does this reflect a lack of understanding of water-quality statistics and a disregard for findings of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency?
************************
MDAG Case Study 84: Oversimplification of Toxicity and Bioavailability in ML-ARD Studies.
This MDAG Case Study looks closer at two frequent oversimplifications in ML-ARD studies. These two are: 1) water is not toxic because it passed the 96-hour LC50 bioassay test, and 2) for geochemical analyses, the partial digestion of rock, tailings, and other mine wastes by two-acid aqua regia provides an indication of bioavailability of contaminants in the mine wastes. Reality is not so simple and these two oversimplifications can be expected to be almost always wrong for ML-ARD.
************************
MDAG Case Study 83: PAG, PAF, NAG (Non-PAG), and NAF - the Acronyms.
“Acronyms can both aid and hinder understanding, depending on context and audience familiarity. While they can condense information and simplify language, their misuse or misinterpretation can lead to confusion and hinder effective communication....” How long will the misunderstanding and misinterpretation of the basic acronyms for ML-ARD continue?
************************
Five technical books on minesite drainage and highly reactive geologic materials are available here at MDAG.com, free of charge.
1) Wavelet Transforms of Drainage from Highly Reactive Geologic Materials; ISBN 978-0-9952149-3-4
2) Searching for Latent Variables in Minesite Drainage Using Exploratory Factor Analysis; ISBN 978-0-9952149-2-7
3) Spectral Analysis of Drainage from Highly Reactive Geologic Materials; ISBN 978-0-9952149-1-0
4) Environmental Geochemistry of Minesite Drainage: Practical Theory and Case Studies; ISBN 0-9682039-1-4
5) Minesite Drainage Chemistry: An Introduction; ISBN 978-0-9952149-0-3
************************
We have also published and co-published more than 100 informative documents at
conferences and in journals.
************************
Adverse environmental effects can arise from water draining over and through highly reactive materials,
such as mining wastes. We steadfastly believe that these adverse effects can
only be understood, predicted, moderated, and remediated reliably by thoroughly understanding past
competent work and by carefully studying full-scale sites.
Heed the
old words of wisdom "Those who ignore the past are doomed to repeat it"
or perhaps some newer ones "we learn from the mistakes of the past how to make new ones".
Is that why we hear that up to 90% of predictions of minesite-drainage chemistry
are too low,
and remain too low for newer minesites, leading to
unexpected costs and
adverse environmental effects for mining
companies and taxpayers? The public is starting to pay closer attention to these errors
and unexpected costs, with mining companies losing credibility. This
is why we at MDAG heavily emphasize real case studies
with abundant data, followed by theory and modelling in subordinate roles.
Privacy Policy: We don't know who you are and we do not try to find out. Enjoy the
site!
Home ⋅ Mining & Environment ⋅ What is MDAG? ⋅ Publishing & Downloads ⋅ Case Studies ⋅ Fractal 1/f Slopes ⋅ Library ⋅ Links ⋅ Contact Us ⋅ Search
Created by K. Morin