So we had seen the level coming up over the months, and were keeping an eye on it. But it started getting a bit close to that limit.
- Stephen Jeffers, general manager, Ballarat Gold Mine
The decision to cease ore processing at the Ballarat Gold Mine was made by the company in the interests of safety, and not imposed on it by the Earth Resources Regulator, says the mine's general manager Stephen Jeffers.
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In an interview with The Courier, Mr Jeffers said an increase in the amount of water held in the 22ha tailing storage facility (TSF) after recent rain led him to the decision to halt work.
"It was my decision, and I informed the mine's owners," Mr Jeffers said.
"We had been keeping an eye on the volume of water in the tailings dam. There was just lots of water out there. We were doing monitoring, we fly drone surveys, and we got a survey back, and it said we didn't have much... let's call it wriggle room, before we were going to hit the statutory limit.
"Our survey drone has got a special sensor on it, a LIDAR sensor. It's all very cutting edge technology. We had flown a survey, got the results back from it, and it was getting pretty high. We had seen the level coming up over the months, and were keeping an eye on it. But it started getting a bit close to that limit. So I thought I would shut the processing down until we can get the situation under control."
The Earth Resources Regulator said they were working with Ballarat Gold Mine on the issue, and on an expansion of the TSF.
"We will continue to work with the licensee to understand their current options, forward tailings management strategy and provide guidance on the relevant regulatory requirements," acting executive director of ERR Laura Helm said.
Mr Jeffers said the current tailings dam has at least a decade of life ahead of it yet, if not more, before it is closed, capped, rehabilitated and replanted.
"The tailings (in the dam) at the moment are actually valuable," Mr Jeffers says.
"They've actually got gold in them. When we make the next TSF, we're going to be making some changes in the plant that will allow us to re-treat those tailings. So we will probably empty that TSF out first, then refill it. And this is over a timeframe of years."
When it is decommissioned, environmental specialists will place a permeability cap on the old TSF, before grass and new trees are sown into the site. There are no residual chemicals in the land, Mr Jeffers says.
Owners Shen Yua Holdings Limited and the City of Ballarat confirmed a new planning application for a second 27-hectare TSF has been submitted to council.
"The application is currently being assessed by City of Ballarat's Statutory Planning unit, with public notification of the proposal to be undertaken in due course," a council media statement said.
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