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INTEGRATION OF ELECTRICAL PROSPECTING METHODS AND GEOCHEMICAL TESTING FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF TAILING DUMPS MODELS

Yuriy Karin, S. B. Bortnikova, Nataliya Yurkevich

Abstract

The relevance of the work is dictated by extensive environmental pollution in the areas of mining waste storage by chemical elements of 1-3 hazard classes (Hg, Be, As, Fe, Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb, Co, Ni, Mo, Ag, and Sb). The interaction of crushed sulfide-containing wastes with surface waters and atmospheric precipitation contributes to the formation of highly mineralized technogenic solutions with element concentrations exceeding the background and maximum permissible values several orders of magnitude. Land and water resources around such storages are experiencing a high technogenic load, underground and surface waters are contaminated, and the local population suffers. An unreasonably little attention is paid to assessing the potential hazard of facilities related to waste or the consequences of the mining industry in our country, although today about 16 billion tons of such waste has been accumulated in the Russian Federation. This problem is also relevant around the world where metal ores are developed. On the other hand, such objects can be considered as ?technogenic deposits?, which contain high concentrations of useful components (Cu, Zn, Ag, Au, In). In practical terms, without understanding the structure, composition and total volume of waste storage facilities, it is impossible to create protective geochemical barriers and remediation schemes for contaminated areas. Unfortunately, today there are no methodology describing step-by-step comprehensive studies with subsequent forecasting of the environmental hazard of a dump. This paper presents the results of our work, which continues interdisciplinary research of abandoned waste in Siberia using methods of geophysics and geochemistry. A comprehensive study of the Belokluch dump containing sulphide-bearing wastes of gold processing production (Kemerovo region) was carried out. The methods of remote sensing (aerial photography), electrical exploration (electromagnetic scanning and Electrical Resistivity Tomography) and classical geochemical testing were used. As a result, an orthophotomap was built, a 3D model of the object, the dump body was contoured, the volumes of waste were determined, and the resources of toxic and valuable components were calculated. The total amount of waste according to aerial photography is more than 103,000 cubic meters. The amount of chemical elements in the dump is: iron - 11074648 kg, copper - 22881 kg, zinc - 16564 kg, arsenic - 63138 kg, cadmium - 71 kg, mercury -15295 kg. This information is further used to calculate the environmental damage and economic feasibility of waste processing.

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DOI resolver: doi.org/10.5593/sgem2020/1.2/s05.077

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