ITRC: Reuse of Solid Mining Waste

Solid mining waste represents a significant quantity of waste material in the United States and around the world. Solid mining waste has a range of physical and chemical properties that make it both potentially valuable and potentially hazardous to human health and the environment. From a commercial perspective, mining removes most of the primary minerals of interest; however, waste materials can still contain valuable minerals and other materials that can be recovered. The different types of mining sites and potential wastes for reuse provide a significant challenge but also an opportunity for innovation.

Improvements in extraction and mineral processing technologies have occurred over time making it possible to recover minerals present in low concentrations. Interest in trace metals and rare earth elements (REEs) has increased, especially with the drive towards renewable energy sources increasing demand for key minerals required for solar panels and batteries. The reuse of solid mining waste can consist of reprocessing and repurposing the waste for resource recovery or a new application or product. This reuse serves as a solution to two significant needs:

• a domestic supply of minerals and materials for sustainable development and national defense purposes
• the reclamation and remediation of land to reduce risks to human and environmental health

The ITRC Reuse of Solid Mining Waste training and guidance document (document available January 2025) is geared towards state regulators and environmental consultants, mining and manufacturing stakeholders, community and tribal stakeholders, and other who have in interest in the potential reuse of solid mining waste.

The guidance and this associated training course includes:

• Mining wastes introduction
• Considerations for reusing mining waste: waste characterization, economic and market considerations, life cycle and risk assessment, regulatory considerations, & stakeholder considerations
• Potential applications for the reuse of solid mining waste: examples of construction, environmental, and industrial reuses
• Review of technologies used in mineral beneficiation and processing

Additionally, the guidance includes several case studies illustrating a range of current mining waste reuse scenarios. Prior to attending the training class, participants are encouraged to view the associated ITRC Reuse of Solid Mining Waste document (available January 2025).

Nick Anton, CDM Smith (AntonNR@cdmsmith.com)
Nick Anton, PE has been with CDM Smith for 20 years working in the remediation industry. He specializes in groundwater, surface water, soil remediation, with a focus on the storage and treatment of mining influenced water (MIW) and remediation of mine waste materials associated with active and abandoned mines. His experience ranges from designing and conducting environmental sampling investigations, to assessment of data and reporting, passive MIW treatability studies, MIW treatment and solid mine waste remediation designs, remediation construction oversight, and operations and maintenance. He has an BS in chemical engineering from Michigan Technological University and an MS in environmental engineering from the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology.

Samantha Fuchs, Geosyntec (Samantha.Fuchs@Geosyntec.com)
Dr. Samantha Fuchs is a Professional from Geosyntec Consultants specializing in groundwater geochemistry evaluation and compliance. While based in Columbia, Maryland, she manages sites in the West Coast, Gulf Coast, Midwest, and Mid-Atlantic. Her expertise is in water and environmental resource engineering with experience in subsurface flow and reactivity, environmental waste assessment and management, regulatory permitting, carbon capture and storage, and quantitative analysis and modeling.

Matt McCaughey, Arcadis (Matthew.McCaughey@arcadis.com)
Matthew (Matt) McCaughey is a Principal Geologist and Environmental Restoration Solution Leader for Arcadis, who lives in Annapolis, Maryland.
He has over 25 years of work experience with a Bachelor of Science degree in Geology from the University of Delaware and a Master of Science degree in Environmental Science and Policy from Johns Hopkins University. He is a licensed Professional Geologist in Pennsylvania.

Wayne Miller, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (miller.wayne@azdeq.gov)

Nicole Osuch, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (osuch.nichole@azdeq.gov)
Nichole Osuch is an Associate Environmental Scientist for the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality with 25 years of experience. She works in the Voluntary Remediation Program that accepts all types of sites with various contaminants to remediate soil and groundwater contamination. Nichole was previously a member of the QUEST team which created an interactive web tool to organize the entire library of ITRC documents and enable users to easily locate documents within the library. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science from the University of Arizona and a Project Management Professional certification.

Moderator:

ITRC Training Program (itrc@itrcweb.org)

• These materials will be available by Thursday, February 13, 2025

Webinar Slides and References:

• These materials will be available by Thursday, February 13, 2025

Additional Resources:

• ITRC. 2010. "Mining Waste Treatment Technology Selection." Washington, DC: Interstate Technology and Regulatory Council.

The feedback form for this webinar will be available starting on Thursday, February 13, 2025.

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Rehabilitation Act Notice for Reasonable Accommodation

It is EPA's policy to make reasonable accommodation to persons with disabilities wishing to participate in the agency's programs and activities, pursuant to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. 791. Any request for accommodation should be made to ITRC Training Program at 202-266-4932 or itrc@itrcweb.org, preferably one week or more in advance of the webinar, so that EPA will have sufficient time to process the request. EPA would welcome specific recommendations from requestors specifying the nature or type of accommodation needed. EPA welcomes specific recommendations from requestors specifying the nature or type of accommodation needed. Please note that CLU-IN provides both alternate phone call-in options and closed captioning for all webinars, and requests for these specific accommodations are not necessary.

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