Mining

GeoAmericas 2012, the second Pan-American Geosynthetics Congress, will be held 1-4 May 2012 at the Libertador Hotel in Lima, Peru. It will be organized by IGS Peru, under the auspices of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS). The congress will highlight the main topics in the geosynthetics industry and applications. Keynote lectures and selected papers will be presented on the main themes: Geosynthetics in Enviromental Applications; Geosynthetics in Dynamic Applications; Geosynthetics in Hydraulic Applications; Geosynthetics in Mining Applications; Geosynthetics in HIghways Applications; Geosynthetics in Sanitary Applications; Case Histories; and New Geosynthetics Products. Learn more.

GeoAmericas 2012, the second Pan-American Geosynthetics Congress, will be held 1-4 May 2012 at the Libertador Hotel in Lima, Peru. It will be organized by IGS Peru, under the auspices of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS). The congress will highlight the main topics in the geosynthetics industry and applications. Keynote lectures and selected papers will be presented on the main themes: Geosynthetics in Enviromental Applications; Geosynthetics in Dynamic Applications; Geosynthetics in Hydraulic Applications; Geosynthetics in Mining Applications; Geosynthetics in HIghways Applications; Geosynthetics in Sanitary Applications; Case Histories; and New Geosynthetics Products. Stay current with the latest at the event website, www.geoamericas2012.com. Learn more here.;

Tensar International Corporation's innovative TriAx™ geogrid, and the technical developments it represents, has won one of civil engineering's most prestigious awards, from the International Geosynthetics Society. Tim Oliver, Tensar International Vice President Marketing, explains: "The IGS Award is all the more significant because it is presented for achievement in the period since 2005, not just the best in one year. Entry is by invitation following nominations from the industry, so Tensar's TriAx™ has obviously already made a genuine impression on an international stage."

To aid Nigeria’s drive for sustainable development, CP Fiberglass Limited, a company that specialises in advanced composites including fiberglass-reinforced products, is set to distribute fiberglass geogrids for road reinforcement/road repair systems. The company, which began operations in February 2010, is a subsidiary of UK-based Crestview and Price Ltd. CP Fiberglass is targeting Nigeria's oil and gas and construction sectors, among others. Learn more here.;

The July 2010 issue of CE News has been released, and in addition to interesting articles on an engineer's perspective of design-build, an exclusive on the EPA's strengthening of NPDES, and an "Olympic-sized" upgrade to one community's wastewater system, the Progressive Engineering section features an article from Laurie Honnigford of the Erosion Control Technology Council (ECTC). Honnigford's article, "Opening the QDOR," outlines the Quality Data Oversight and Review (QDOR™) program from ECTC--a program which takes a scientific view on selecting the best erosion control materials.

The July 2010 issue of CE News features an article from Laurie Honnigford of the Erosion Control Technology Council (ECTC). Writing for the magazine's Progressive Engineering section, Honnigford outlines the Quality Data Oversight and Review (QDOR) program from ECTC--a program which takes a scientific view on selecting the best erosion control materails. Read "Opening the QDOR" online. Learn more here.;

Scorpio Gold Corporation is pleased to announce initial sample results of material contained within the pregnant/barren solution ponds at the Mineral Ridge gold deposit leach facility, Nevada. Peter J. Hawley, CEO, Director, reports, "While dewatering the pregnant and barren ponds for inspection and testing of the pond liners, company representatives were quite surprised to see that the barren pond design did not include a carbon fines pond. Typical pond design would include a settling pond for carbon fines created from attrition of the loaded carbons in the carbon adsorption circuit. Sampling of the barren pond sludge has returned significant results."

Applied Market Information (AMI) has released the program and registration brochure for Waterproof Membranes 2010, the fourth international conference in this series. Waterproof Membranes 2010 takes place at the Maritim Hotel in Cologne, Germany 30 November - 2 December 2010. AMI is offering Euro 100 off registration for those who book their space before October 20. Learn more about this year's program.

SKZ, with scientific committee support from Cemagref and the Geosynthetic Institute (GSI), will host the 3rd International Symposium on Geosynthetic Clay Liners (GBR-C 2k10) 15-16 September 2010 at the Fortress Marienberg in Würzburg, Germany. Technical sessions will address shear and mechanical behaviour of GCLs, chemical resistance of GCLs, testing of GCLs under unsaturated conditions, behaviour of GCLs in landfill covers (case studies), regulations, new concepts and developments in the use of GCLs, and GCLs for hydraulic and construction applications. Visit the conference's website for the latest. Learn more here.;

The IGS Award Committee presented HUESKER Synthetic GmbH with the 2010 IGS Award at a special ceremony on 26 May 2010 during the 9th International Conference on Geosynthetics (9ICG) in Guaruja, Brazil. The IGS Committee voted unanimously to present the award to HUESKER; the citation recognizes HUESKER for its continued commitment to the development and production of geosynthetic products, often using innovative polymers.

Bateman Engineering has commenced the engineering and procurement (EP) on the Maxi phase of the innovative greenfields Trekkopje project in the heart of Namibia's Namib Desert, some 65 km north-east of the coastal town of Swakopmund. The French nuclear giant AREVA, through its subsidiary AREVA Resources Namibia and AREVA Processing Namibia Pty (Ltd), is developing the world's first uranium mine to utilise an alkaline heap leach process. The heap leach pad will comprise 30 cells in total, of which about 22 will be active at any given time, while the remainder will be in various stages of construction (stacking), demolition (reclaiming), or maintenance per the OOHLP (On-Off Heap Leach Pad) method.

The Federal On-Site Coordinator in US has accepted yesterday night an oil cleaning device to combat the environmental consequences of the oil spill that is polluting the waters of the Gulf of Mexico since the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling well on 20 April. The US has accepted a high capacity, high speed off-shore skimmer offered by the European Union through the European Maritime Safety Agency and currently located in Vigo (Spain). The Framo Transrec 150 skimmer is an off-shore device that separates oil from water. Contacts are ongoing in order to arrange details for the delivery. The US coast guard has also accepted last night 1200 metres of off-shore booms offered by Norway.

Within the framework of the All-Russian Conference "Railway Transportation of Oil Cargoes" a round-table discussions were held dedicated to the project of liquefied petroleum gas transshipment terminal at Ust-Luga port. Representatives of SIBUR, Gazprom Neft, Novatech and Federal Tariff Service took part in the event.

The USGS estimates that the Arctic holds about 22 percent of the world’s undiscovered conventional oil and natural gas resource base, 30 percent of the world’s undiscovered natural gas resources, 13 percent of the world’s undiscovered oil resources, and 20 percent of the world NGL resources. Access, exploration, mining and environmental preservation are issues to be discussed at the Arctic Technology Conference 2011 (7-9 February 2011) in Houston. Abstracts are accepted through 1 August 2010. Learn more here.;

Two new ASTM International standards will aid in the recent national movement to develop a mechanistic-empirical design guide for pavements. The new standards, developed by ASTM International D35 on Geosynthetics, will each cover quantification of fundamental material properties for pavement components. The standards, ASTM D7499 (Test Method for Measuring Geosynthetic-Soil Resilient Interface Shear Stiffness) and ASTM D7556 (Test Methods for Determining Small-Strain Tensile Properties of Geogrids and Geotextiles by In-Air Cyclic Tension Tests) are under the jurisdiction of Subcommittee D35.01 on Mechanical Properties.

The 26th International Conference on Solid Waste Technology and Management (ICSW) 27-30 March 2011 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, invites abstracts for both oral and poster presentations. This wide-ranging event is affiliated with the Journal of Solid Waste Technology and Management and Widener University's Department of Civil Engineering. Abstracts due: 31 October 2010. Learn more. Learn more here.;

According to a new report titled “Mine- Back to the Boom” from Pricewaterhouse- Coopers, it was a tale of two halves in 2009 for the global mining industry. The trends seen at the end of 2008 continued into the beginning of 2009, with commodity prices continuing to fall, tough price negotiations with customers an issue and challenging market conditions overall. As the year went on, however, companies responded by restructuring their balance sheets, closing mines and cutting production to reduce costs. As a result, the market capitalization of the top 40 global mining companies increased 118%, returning to the heights of 2007. Learn more here.;

This interest in rubber-based liners for SAG milling flies in the face of the previous belief that a SAG mill, using large-diameter grinding media, was just too tough an environment for rubber. But synthetic and natural rubbers are moving from secondary liner status to primary liners in grinding applications at mines. A Canadian company claims to have supplied liners to more than 300 mills around the world. Learn more here.;

ASTM International Committee D35 on Geosynthetics has announced a number of interesting work items, in the wake of the recent meeting in St. Louis. This includes five items covering areas such as nominal thickness of geosynthetics, geocomposites and pavement edge drains, soil-geotextile clogging, and more. Also, Committee D18 on Soil and Rock has items on hydraulically-applied erosion control (HECPs) products and gabions. See the latest here.

Federal regulators are concerned that a dam built by Monsanto Co. earlier this year to trap phosphate mine runoff may be stopping more than just pollution. They say the dam has also halted millions of gallons of water in Sheep Creek that would otherwise help fill the Blackfoot River. The Environmental Protection Agency now wants the maker of Roundup herbicide to begin a costly treatment to remove selenium and heavy metals, then discharge clean water downstream, instead of capturing it in a 50-million-gallon lake behind the dam and using it for dust control on its mining roads. Learn more here.;

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is hosting four public information meetings on the proposed study of the relationship between hydraulic fracturing and its potential impacts on drinking water. Hydraulic fracturing is a process that helps production of natural gas or oil from shale and other geological formations. By pumping fracturing fluids (water and chemical additives) and sand or other similar materials into rock formations, fractures are created that allow natural gas or oil to flow from the rock through the fractures to a production well for extraction. The meetings will provide public information about the proposed study scope and design. EPA will solicit public comments on the draft study plan.

Chicago-based DePaul University has announced that it will offer the nation's first master's degree in predictive analysis. IBM has signed on to provide resources for the program. But this isn't intended to be theoretical statistics; it is a hands-on application of data analytics. A great many sectors might benefit from these advanced data management and analysis techniques. Learn more here.;

A great many alternatives have been proposed for mitigating the damage from the ongoing oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Geosynthetic technologies have certainly been part of active solutions, from oil booms to floating geosynthetic tubes to sock normally used for stopping sediment migration (and, in this case, perhaps filled with human hair). But, so far, these solutions have focused mostly on surface collection of oil. In an online discussion with I-CORP's Ian Peggs, SKZ's Helmut Zanzinger proposed some loose ideas on how geosynthetic technologies might be incorporated into stopping the spill from its point of origin. We reprint his comments here by permission and invite other ideas from the global geosynthetics community.

Albuquerque-based Samcon, Inc. has won a $738,000 state contract for a second attempt to stabilize soil and encourage vegetation growth to control erosion at a large abandoned coal mine waste pile in the Sugarite Canyon State Park, northeast of Raton, New Mexico. The project is just the latest in a decade-long, $4 million effort to preserve the park’s five huge mine waste piles and to slow their erosion into creeks and streams in the canyon. In addition to historic site preservation restrictions on work, there are very steep slopes. Learn more here.;

Roughly 120 visitors came to the renowned Bauhaus University Weimar recently for a Department of Civil Engineering event titled "Energy. Experiment. Experience." One of the event's highlights included the first public testing of geogrid-reinforced stone columns--using a 2.2-ton vehicle. NAUE GmbH & Co. KG, an international manufacturer of geosynthetics, worked with Prof. Dr.-Ing. Karl Josef Witt and Dipl.-Ing. Mary Noack from the Bauhaus University Weimar, to create the geogrid-reinforced stone columns on which the car was supported. The geogrid used in the experiment was NAUE's Secugrid®. Read about the experiment and link to a video demonstration.