In light of the global challenges faced around mine waste, particularly tailings, the Global Minerals Professionals Alliance (GMPA) will be undertaking ‘Global Action on Tailings’. The initiative was announced at a recent meeting of the GMPA – a collaborative partnership between leading professional organizations for minerals around the world – held in February 2019, in Denver, Colorado in conjunction with the 2019 SME Annual Conference & Expo.

In addition to examining tailings from the perspective of disposal and closure, the initiative will seek to advance discussions and solutions relating to tailings management, tailings reprocessing/repurposing, and ultimately moving towards tailings elimination.

The approach will be multi-pronged, with the first step involving data collection and the dissemination of existing best practices, case studies, and research though a forthcoming GMPA Global Action on Tailings website.

Tailings teams will be established in each of the participating GMPA organizations and experts on all aspects of tailings management and processing will be engaged in addressing this issue.

A think tank event will be held in Arequipa, Peru in September, 2019 in conjunction with PERUMIN — Convencion Minera. 

The GMPA also hopes to work collaboratively with the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) which recently announced its intention to establish an independent panel of experts to develop an international standard for tailings facilities for its member companies.