Landvinning : scenarier för efterbehandling och gestaltning av Aitikgruvan, Gällivare

Abstract: Open pit mining creates huge amounts of tailings and waste rock deposits. Due to it's content of sulphide minerals, predominantly pyrite (FeS2), there is a risk of oxidation and formation of acid water containing heavy metals, known as Acid Rock Drainage (ARD). To prevent the process of oxidation, the tailings and waste rock have to be reclaimed. The most commonly used methods of reclamation are a coverage of water or soil. Mining also results in a large-scale interference in the landscape that will make an eternal change of its appearance. The way the waste rock is deposited can influence the spread, elevation, and the ultimate shape. The design of the deposits makes a difference for their future appearance. The landscape design process is always a choice of contrast or interplay between the landscape and the object. A large-scale interference as a mine will contrast by differences in shape, scale, lines, colour and texture. This degree thesis makes a brief overview of the characteristics of the deposits from sulphide mines and the possible methods for reclamation of Boliden's Aitik mine, but the main purpose of this work is to give a proposal for the landscaping of the future mine area after the mining activity has ended. At the same time it's important to make a design that is long-term stable, accordingly taking the suggested methods of reclamation as a starting point. At the moment the ore is calculated to last until 2025. On the basis of the rate of production of 36 Mton per year the amounts of waste rock and tailings that will be produced during this time is known. There is a permission to deposit the waste to certain elevations. The Boliden mining company has presented a landscape plan that has won legal approval by the Environmental court. The plan indicates the levels that the waste rock deposits and the tailings dams will reach, but it doesn't reveal what shape they will adopt. The consequence of the present landscape plan will be that the deposits get a flat, horizontal shape with the crest at the permitted level. The thesis intents to visualize this case. A main conclusion of this work is that the straight lines and flat shape of the waste rock deposits will make a bigger contrast to the surrounding landscape than their scale and elevation. The degree thesis proposes an alternative strategy for landscape design that in a better way will interplay with the surrounding landscape. Most probably the Boliden mining company will apply for new permissions for prolonged activity and the ultimate end point for the mine is therefore unknown. Due to this, the most important part of the proposal is not the details but the principles. The design proposal of this work has deliberately passed the permitted elevations for the wate rock deposits. One advantage of this is that, in case of an extended life of mine, the deposits will hold larger amounts of waste rock than calculated in the present landscape plan. An Overview of the Proposal: The waste rock deposits – a recreational landscape The waste rock deposits will be shaped with bigger differences in altitude and slopes, still a maximum slope of 1:3. The proposed design will make parts of the deposits more visible. At long distance, their shape will interplay with the surrounding hills. Gett­ing closer, their altitude will be notable and make them outstanding landmarks. Central parts of the mine area including the pit and the waste rock deposits will be developed for tourism and recreational purposes and affiliated to the adjacent nature reserve of Leipipir. A common visitor center including a parking area will be developed in the former buildings of the plant. The tailings pond – a productive landscape The pond of the tailings will be divided by embankments and get four different water surfaces. By this way the water table will be raised in a large part of the tailings. It will facilitate the growing conditions of the surface and further prevent oxidation of the tailings. The design will reinforce the impression of the straight lines, at least from high altitudes. From lower visual points in the landscape there are no sights of the pond surface. The tailings pond constituting almost 3600 acres, can according to the proposal be developed for energy production, either by the establishment of a wind power park, and/or cultivation of energy crops. Parts of the infrastructure of the mine can be reused and new job opportunities can be created.