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Service
Soil and Material Management
Industry
Mining & Metals
PROJECT LOCATION
Preissac, Quebec
PROJECT DATE
September 2020 to April 2021
QUANTITY
N/A
CHALLENGES
The project involved the remediation of 19 areas totalling 35,000 m², some of which were forested. The work had to account for soils and mine tailings containing concentrations of dioxins and polychlorinated furans, petroleum hydrocarbons C10 to C50, and copper exceeding the MELCC’s generic “C” Criteria. The project also required sorting materials based on their contamination level, transporting them to an authorized treatment facility, and returning the decontaminated mine tailings to the site.
BACKGROUND
After operations ceased at the Preissac molybdenite mine, rubber scraps and tar containing copper chloride were burned in an area bordering Lake Fontbonne and on the mine tailings pile. The resulting emissions settled in the surrounding woodlands, while solid residues were mixed with the mine tailings during the decommissioning and dismantling of the mining facilities.
An environmental characterization primarily revealed the presence of soils and mine tailings contaminated with polychlorinated dioxins and furans, petroleum hydrocarbons C10 to C50, and copper. The MERN then commissioned the environmental remediation of the site.
Solution
Prior to excavation, tree clearing and stump removal were carried out in certain areas, covering approximately 7,000 m². Contaminated soils and mine tailings with contamination levels exceeding MELCC Criteria C were then excavated, managed by category, and transported off-site to an authorized treatment facility.
Following treatment, the decontaminated mine tailings were recycled and returned to their original site, the tailings pond of the former mine.
HIGHLIGHTS
- 19 target areas, covering a total area of 35,000 m².
- Approximately 7,000 m² cleared of trees and stumps prior to excavation work.
- 115 metric tons of mine tailings with concentrations of petroleum hydrocarbons C10 to C50 exceeding Criterion C but below the limit value specified in Schedule I of the RRBCS.
- 11,665 metric tons of mine tailings with concentrations of polychlorinated dioxins and furans and petroleum hydrocarbons C10 to C50 exceeding Criteria C but below the limit values in Schedule I of the RRBCS.
- 850 metric tons of mine tailings with concentrations of polychlorinated dioxins and furans exceeding the limit value in Schedule I of the RRBCS.
- 3,625 metric tons of soil with concentrations of polychlorinated dioxins and furans exceeding the limit value in Schedule I of the RRBCS.
- 12,630 metric tons of treated mine tailings, recycled, and returned to the original site.
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