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The End is Nigh

Author(s): 
Jeff Parshley was a key contributor for this article
Date: 
Friday, October 1, 2010
First presented: 
Mining Magazine
Type: 
Article
Category: 
Environmental/Social

Mine closure is as much a part of planning for modern mine operations as the feasibility study prior to start-up. In fact, it is usually an integral part of the feasibility study itself, and in most cases, is most effective when incorporated at the earliest possible stage.

This is the time when the project has the greatest degrees of freedom to place facilities in locations where they will be easiest to decommission and rehabilitate.

Careful consideration of closure approaches and objectives, regardless of how conceptual they might be during early design phases, could significantly affect design criteria in ways that the design team would not otherwise consider.

Feature Author

Jeff Parshley

Jeff Parshley has more than 30 years of project experience throughout North America, Latin America, Australia, Asia, Europe and Africa, which includes mine permitting, environmental audits, feasibility and due diligence studies, mine closure design and permitting, liability assessments, reclamation and closure cost estimating, pit lake studies, mine waste studies and environmental geology. He has considerable experience in the permitting and closure of gold heap leach operations in the western U.S. and has lectured in the U.S., Latin America, Europe, Australia and Africa on mine closure planning and design. He regularly heads multi-disciplinary teams on projects ranging from environmental liability assessments to permitting to mine closure. He is currently carrying out a number of mine permitting, remediation and environmental geochemistry projects, a large underground mine expansion and several permanent mine closures.

Corporate Consultant, Mine Closure
SRK Reno
SRK Kazakhstan