cyanide spill at baia mare

1. cyanide spill at baia mare Lance Connell Addias Mervin Monique M. Nurse

2. Cyanide Gold Mining Operation • There are two methods of extracting gold from ore • Vat leaching involves mixing extracted ore with a CN solution in large vats. • Heap leaching involves piling ore into large heaps and then spraying a CN solution on the heap and allowing the CN solution to trickle through, stripping the gold from the ore.

4. Why is cyanide used? • Gold is readily dissolved by cyanide. • Most the world’s gold supply is found in low concentrations in nature and must be dissolved from ore to be acquired. Less than 10 grams/ton of ore excavated. • NaCN is typically used as a solvent and diluted to a concentration of 0.015 – 0.035% NaCN. • Gold extraction in the Aurul plant was approximately 700 mg/liter of slurry.

5. Mining near water sources • Most gold mines are often found near water sources since water is used to dilute the NaCN to acceptable levels for mining. • Having a readily available supply of water cuts down on transportation and other costs associated with water needs. • In the case of Baia Mare, the tailings from the old Meda ponds, used for gold extraction are combined with water to form a slurry that was pumped to a processing plant where more CN is added if needed. Then the slurry is pumped the rest of the 6.5 km to the new Aurul gold mining site.

6. Baia Mare Processing Plant • The processing plant was in charge of receiving the slurry from the chronically leaking Meda ponds, assessing the level of cyanide in the slurry and adding more if needed. • Cyanide levels were monitored and if needed brought to an acceptable range of 0.015 – 0.035% NaCN within the slurry and then pumped into the new tailing dams. • Extraction of gold as well as other precious metals were done at this site and remaining tailings were then pumped to the dams. • To maximize gold extraction, tailings from the new dam were pumped back to the plant for further extraction of extremely low levels of gold and were then pumped back to the tailing dam.

7. What do tailing dams hold? • Tailing dams hold CN treated ore wastes from which gold has been removed. • The Aurul tailings contained concentrations of 400 mg/liter of CN and concentrations of free CN of 120 mg/liter. • Tailings typically contain 0.60 g/ton of recoverable gold. • The Aurul tailings also contained high concentrations of heavy metals such as: iron, cooper, arsenic, cadmium, lead, nickel, and manganese.

9. Tailing dam construction • The new Aurul tailing dams were built to replace the chronically leaking Meda ponds located near Baia Mare. • The dam covered 93 hectares and was 20 meters high. • The dam was built to take advantage of the sloping hills in the area. • Lining the dam was a plastic liner that afforded 0% discharge into the surrounding area. • The dam wall was constructed on top of a starter dam, with the new dam wall added as more slurry was pumped in. The idea was to have the tailings form the wall as more and more slurry was deposited into the dam. Hydrocyclones were added to assist in lining the dam wall with the tailings.

11. Tailing dam construction • The dam wall was constructed so that the dam could deal with storm run-off up to 118 mm. • A decanting well was fitted in the center of the dam so that the slurry could be re-circulated back to the processing plant. • Drains were also created as additional protection against seepage into the environment.

12. Cyanide mining in undeveloped countries • Large businesses often find it beneficial to found operations in areas where governmental regulations may not be up to par. • Many environmental organizations have pointed this out as a major contribution to the cyanide spill in Baia Mare. • The Serbian Minister of Environment announced that he will be suing the company responsible and asks for an international trial to be held.

13. The Spill • The Baia Mare area received approximately 120 mm of snowfall and 40 mm of rain from mid-December until the end of January. • The dam was only able to accommodate storm run-off up to 118 mm. • On January 30, 2000, due to the precipitation in the area the dam crest was flooded and over 25 meters of the dam wall was washed away.

14. The Drastic effect of the Cyanide spill on the environment Marine Life Plant Life Water compositional change

15. Affect upon Marine life Estimated 80% of all fish in the Tisza River died. Thousands of tons of fish died. Some fish were found to contain 2.6 mg of cyanide per kilogram of weight. Extensive damage done to the river’s ecosystems and its fauna, affecting birds, and carnivores. The Cyanide plume that traveled through the rivers was 100 times more concentrated than the limit value for drinking water in the region. 30%-60% plankton killed

16. Affect on plant Life The initial affect of the high Cyanide concentrations on the ecosystem was devastating, however due to Cyanide’s short lived presence in the water the environment was able to begin recovery.

17. Environmental impacts Heavy metals persist in the environment and bioaccumulate in living organisms. Since the incident the heavy metals have accumulated in the sediments are collecting 6-10km downstream of Baia Mare. They will continue to be washed downstream and spread throughout the river system.

19. The rivers that fed or were fed into the Tisza river, have very high heavy metal concentrations, and the concentration is increasing over time. The plume traveled down the length of the river, into the Danube river and then into the Black Sea by which time it had significantly diluted . The waters pH would have changed from the chemical reactions taking place within it. Compositional changes in the water

21. Cyanide Cyanide comes in many forms The most lethal being that of Hydrogen cyanide , HCN, which is lethal to humans at 1.1 mg/kg in the blood. In the plume that sweeped through the river, Cyanide most likely formed complexes with heavy metals associated with it. Even though free floating Cyanide is readily degradable when it forms into a complex ,dilution and degradation become complicated. Complexes: Ferrous ferrocyanide (Fe[FeCN6]) and ferric ferrocyanide (Fe4[FeCN6]3). And Copper ferrocyanide (Cu2[Fe(CN)6])

22. Cyanide the other heavy metals characterized in the environment • Cyanide in nature • Time in the environment • Reactions in the water, and wildlife • Forms of cyanide. • The behavior of heavy metals in nature • What is difficult about removing these contaminants? • Where does it collect?

23. The Cyanide Plume The Cyanide plume was measured for 2000km from the point of origin to the Danube delta. Free Cyanide is biodegradable, and as it continued downstream it was easily diluted, this made the ongoing effects of the plume short lived.

24. The oxidation of cyanide, can produce cyanate which is less toxic, and readily hydrolyzes to ammonia and carbon dioxide. Cyanide also reacts to Sulfur which is found in the ore and also in the wastewater from the tailings dam. Cyanide and sulfur react to produce thiocyanate, which degrades into cyanate and sulfuric acid. The sulfuric acid would create Hydronium ions which would allow for the further degradation of the cyanate. Hydrogen cyanide gas which has the ability to form during these reactions does not occur, because hydrogen cyanide ionizes in water. Forming CN- anions which contribute to the reaction Reactions in the water

25. The Heavy metals The heavy metals that were included in the plume consisted of copper, iron, zinc, and lead. The high levels of these heavy metals discharged into the rivers, would cause long term affects in the ecosystem, because they are not readily degradable. This discharge creates a chronic pollution whose damage is harder to estimate. These heavy metals mix with the sediments at the water bed, are bioaccumulated from plant and animal life and enter into the ecosystems food chain.

26. If the wastewater had any treatment beforehand, the damage would have been lessened. Normally heavy metals can be removed from wastewater through flocculation, but this is in a controlled setting. The heavy metals will continue to be pushed and accumulated throughout the entire region by the physical forces of the water current. New exfilitration and tailings dams were built to collect these moving heavy metals. Heavy metal removal from Baia Mare

27. Collection The heavy metal contaminants are pumped into an exfiltration pond where the heavy metals settle and water is drained back into the main pond.

28. Baia Mare Gold Mining Plant

29. NAtural breakdown of cyanide • Cyanide breakdown quickly in sunlight • Into less toxic but longer-lasting forms, such as cyanate and cyanogen • Free cyanide breakdown slowly when water is covered by ice • Protected from direct sun

30. What measures were taken to minimize the damage? • Sodium hypochlorite was poured into the spill in an attempt to neutralize the cyanide. • Turns cyanide into a less toxic compound • The remaining water in the containment pool was diverted into a nearby tailing dam. • Sediments from other tailing deposits • Were used to seal the breach • Reinforce other parts of the dam • A limited outflow of 40-50 liters per second continued and was treated with sodium hypochlorite until February 2. • The cyanide was biologically degraded and diluted as it moved along the length of the river.

31. FLOW OF CYANIDE SPILL

32. How did the UN mission aid the recovery after the spill? • Water samples from surface water were taken by three teams from the 21 sampling stations. • Typically, the water sampling locations were identical with those for the sediment sampling. • The UN sampling took place about three weeks after the plume had passed • Could not validate any of the results obtained by the Romanian, Hungarian or Yugoslavian experts.

33. What measurements were taken when the plume hit the Danube and Black Sea? • The UNEP Balkans Task Force took water samples from the river Danube in FRY on 15-17 February • Between Pancevo and the Iron Gate • Cyanide concentrations were from 0.008 mg/L to 0.117 mg/L • UN team sampled surface water at the Tisza river • Free cyanide concentrations of 0.014 mg/L • Within an acceptable range • The UN Team recorded the plume of cyanide contamination in the Danube Delta • Measurements were taken between 26 and 28 of February gave a maximum concentration of 0.058 mg/L

34. Whatotherheavymetalswerefound? • Very high concentrations of heavy metals were detected • Copper (total concentration 412.3 mg/L) • Iron (total concentration 31.3 mg/L) • Manganese (total concentration 18.0 mg/L) • Zinc (total concentration 14.5 mg/L).

35. Tailings dam failure released 100,000 cubic meters of cyanide contaminated liquid

36. Werethereanychanges? • UNEP prepared new guidelines for mining • UNEP joined with ICOLD to produce two Technical Bulletins for laying down design requirements and providing lessons from past incidents as a guide to designers. • International Council for Metals and the Environment, a multi-stakeholder process was launched to develop a management code for cyanide

37. Baia Mare Task Force of the Tizsa river basin • Short term regulations : • Each site will be inspected by suitably qualified personnel and a safety/risk assessment made • Hydro-meteorological data for each site will be re-evaluated in order to ensure that tailings ponds and lagoons are designed to cope with extreme weather events • Assessments will be made of the structural capacity of the tailings dams and impoundments to withstand extreme precipitation and snowmelt events • Immediate steps to improve safety will be carried out where these are deemed necessary • Operational and accident/emergency procedures will be reviewed and improved where necessary at both a facility and local administration level • All sites, will immediately be placed under regular surveillance • Abandoned sites • Daily inspection and tests in times of adverse weather conditions

38. References • Kovac, C ,Cyanide spill threatens health in Hungary. 2000 BMJ 320,7234 • UNITED NATIONS OFFICE FOR THE COORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS - OCHA-Online http://www.reliefweb.int/ocha_ol/programs/response/unep/rombaiamare.html • Argeseanu, Solveig. "Incident, Accident, Catastrophe: The Baia Mare Cyanide Spill" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, Hilton San Francisco & Renaissance Parc 55 Hotel, San Francisco, CA,, Aug 14, 2004 <Not Available>. 2009-05-26 • www.wise-cranium.org/mdafbm.html • http://www.allacademic.com//meta/p_mla_apa_research_citation/1/0/9/1/8/pages109181/p109181-1.php • Cyanide Spill at Baia Mare – Assessment misson report UNEP OCHA • www.lenntech.com/environmental-disasters.htm • www.reliefweb.iint.ocha_ol/programs/respons/unep/rombaiamare.html • Kanthak, J,TheBaia Mare Gold Mine Cyanide Spill: Causes, Impacts, and Liability, Greenpeace International, 2000 • http://www.lenntech.com/environmental-disasters.htm • Garvey, Tom et. al., Report of the International Task Force for assessing the Baia Mare Accident. December 2000 • Shefchek, J et al., Subsurface fate and transport of Cyanide at MGP sites, Land Contamination and Reclamation, 3 n4 1995 • Levei, E.A. et al, Surface water pollution with heavy metals in Baia Mare mining basin, Research institute for Analytical Instrumentation, 2000 • www.enviroliteracy.org/article.php/1120.html