Introduction
The thursday, february 24, 2022 the Regional Event "..." was held virtually.Mining and Circular Economy". This is the fourth in a series of eight events on mining and climate change being organized by the Raw Materials and Climate Project (MaPriC) with the support of the LEDS LAC platform. MaPriC is a project implemented by the German Development Cooperation (GIZ) together with the Ministry of Mines and Energy of Colombia. In a virtual format, 299 people from different countries such as Colombia, Peru, Mexico, Chile, Argentina, among others, participated.
In the first segment of the event, Slendy Diaza circular economy consultant, and Jacques WiertzThe presentation was followed by a presentation of the principles of the circular economy, its relationship with mining, as well as the potentials and challenges in the sector. In the second segment government representatives showed the initiatives in the regulatory framework. They presented Tatiana Aguilar, Director of Corporate Mining of the Ministry of Mines and Energy of Colombia, and Sebastian HerreraHead of the Sustainable Development Division at the Chilean Ministry of Mining.
In the third and final segmentIn addition, different actors presented their initiatives and experiences. They presented Sergio EscuderoMining Director of Conconcreto (Colombian stone aggregates company); Sergio YiSenior in Water Management at Antamina Peru (Peruvian mining company specialized in copper and zinc concentrates); Roberto ParraTechnical Director of the Green Copper Project New Copper Technology Zero Emissions and Zero Residues of the Universidad de Concepción in Chile; y Sebastian RojasHead of Sustainability of Central Valley Mining (Chile's leading tailings processing company).
The recording and video materials can be found at here.
Key messages
Background presentations: What is the circular economy and how does it relate to the mining and raw materials sector?
The circular economy is a model that decouples the consumption of natural resources from economic growth. Mining is the transformation of a resource into a resource. commoditywhich is a product made available to society for consumption. When extracted from a deposit, mineral resources are gradually depleted. Therefore, the first aim of the circular economy is to reduce the exploitation of virgin minerals and use those that can be reused, thus extending the life span of the mineral deposits.
The circular economy applied to the mining sector allows us to achieve the following:
- Metals can be recycled and their recovery can be maximized.
- It is also a great opportunity to recover mining by-products since mining generates huge amounts of waste. It is necessary to make a good characterization of the mineral, to identify the possible residues to recover and reuse as inputs in other processes and products. However, in this case, we must consider that many times there is not a sufficient market to absorb these volumes. In addition, it must be considered that the recovery and transformation processes will require labor, capital, energy and water.
- Recycling and recovering raw materials and mining waste will generate fewer negative impacts and lower GHG emissions.
Panel of initiatives in the regulatory framework
Ministry of Mines and Energy of Colombia
In 2019, Colombia's Ministry of the Environment launched the National Circular Economy Strategy. The Colombian Ministry of Mines and Energy quickly aligned itself with this strategy and initiated actions on tailings deposits and acid drainage. As a result, they were able to identify challenges and opportunities in the sector and found that the mining sector was a pioneer in circular economy. To date, they have guidelines that seek to promote research, technology and a collaborative network.
In 2021, Ernst and Young concluded that mining companies that can demonstrate their contribution to a sustainable future will be able to play a more competitive role in the market. The circular economy not only leverages the idea of sustainability in companies, but also brings significant financial returns and generates a good positioning as an industry. The circular economy generates value, it can take advantage of everything that is not being used to boost local activities and promote technological development.
Ministry of Mining of Chile
Chile is a mining country and for this reason, the Chilean Ministry of Mining proposed a National Mining Policy. The document indicates that the activity has a demand for resources such as electricity or water, so it is key to promote the circular economy. In Chile, many of the commitments of the mining sector to 2050 are directly related to this economic model. For example, in the energy sector, the goal for 2030 is that 90% of the sector's electricity contracts come from renewable energies (and 100% by 2050). In relation to water consumption, by 2030, it is proposed to consume only 10 % of inland water and that 90% correspond to recirculated or desalinated water. Finally, the mining sector's goal is to be carbon neutral by 2040.
However, the main challenge for the ministry is the profound transformation of the sector, since the state's impetus is not enough, but it is also necessary to involve all stakeholders and create spaces to strengthen relationships based on trust.
Panel of business initiatives and experiences
Conconcreto is a company that produces stone aggregates and construction materials. After multidisciplinary and collaborative work with academia, they identified that their waste and tailings could be an opportunity for others. They found that good characterization of their materials was the key to identifying opportunities and not focusing only on the extraction of certain minerals. Along these lines, Conconcreto developed a project where they were able to turn their waste into inputs for the ceramic and brick industry. In this way, they created a new business model that fits the concept of circular economy. Finally, they point out that although the circular economy requires greater investment and innovation, collaborative work and legal and tax incentives are key.
Antamina is a mining company specializing in copper and zinc concentrates. Its water management is aimed at maintaining its production cycle for a longer period of time and maximizing its use. Thus, the circular economy approach focuses on the reuse and recycling of water through diversion mechanisms and segregated management and physical-chemical treatments. With this process, 98 % of the water used in its concentrator plant has been recycled from the tailings pond. Part of the recycled water is taken to other facilities such as the Punta Lobitos Port where the water is reused through a filtering process that makes the water suitable for irrigation of a 170-hectare forestation in the Forests in Huarmey, northern Peru. The company emphasizes that water reuse and recycling is part of its initiative to achieve water efficiency and minimize the negative impacts of its activities.
The University of Concepción is committed to the initiatives and projects needed to achieve a low-carbon future. Electrification, the use of renewable energies and forging an energy transition are key to a more sustainable mining industry. In the Green Copper Project New Zero Emissions and Zero Waste Copper Technology green hydrogen is used to process concentrates and recover from mine tailings, copper, a cement additive and even produce iron. This process has been achieved with zero emissions and zero waste.
Central Valley Mining (MVC), is a company that has been transforming tailings into economic assets for more than 29 years. The daily production of tailings in Chile corresponds to 1.45 million tons, making Chile the third country with more tailings deposits in the world. MVC reprocesses more than 220,000 thousand tons of tailings per day and from the processed tailings it obtains copper, molybdenum and water, which undoubtedly generates economic benefits.
The mining of the future requires safer, chemically and physically stable tailings, as well as more efficient water and energy consumption. Research and development of technologies is also needed to exploit resources, transforming environmental liabilities into mining assets. Information on tailings operation should be made available to communities and public agencies.