California has the toughest mining regulations in the world.
Well, it may not exist so on paper, but in effect they are just a guide for departments of government for hypocracy in refusing permits in an arbitrary manner. In Canada 30 years ago, that is how the Federal government cut back on new mine permits and expansion of mine permits. Where the provinces had jurisdiction over mining, the feds had control over riparian rights. By refusing water permits and air permits, the Feds would not allow mines to expand. This led to the development of autoclaves for treating ore.
On the other hand, the mines themselves failed in many cases to acquaint themselves with the technology necessary to abate the PPM pollutants that the government alleged were harmful. Today there are advanced processes using carbon bed elctrolysis and filtration, that will remove even trace amounts of dangerous and accumulative heavy metals.
Is arsenic really that harmful? In the 1980's the government of Ontario found that the drinking water of Cobalt, Ontario, a former silver mining town, was 60 times higher in arsenic levels than the recommended limits! There was no noticeable ill effects amongst the population. In fact arsenic can be and is used as an intestinal medicine as it will eliminate some intestinal flora. I am not recommending exposure to it, but those are the facts.
The iron process for removing arsenic from water and air discharge is an acceptable method for handling effluent and can do it cheaply.
What 16 to One is dealing with is a political mind set and arbitrary and unaccountable governments. Never mind that the numbers about limits are just a game with no serious scientific rationale, they boards just don't care. It's a club that they can swing. They have no idea what the gestalt of pollution really is, and what to do about it. Let them try to fight the farming and energy industry. A new car, a house payment and the serious polluters are ignored pronto.
I don't see anyone shutting down North Slope Oil and gas. Act of Congress, it gets approval. Hey! It's in the public interest. Want to mine 500,000 tons per day of tar sand for oil, with 25 times the tailings discharge in slimes, carcinogenic hydrocarbons and metals of any metal mine? How fast do you want the permit? Is yesterday good enough?
There was an operator of a small gold mine in Ontario who obtained a permit to operate by going to a dry process of making the tailing. You would think that without any water discharge at all, you would get permitted. But then there is the bogeyman of mine pump out water. In most cases the increase in metals from mines pumping out water unless you are talking massive sulphides, is nil. I have tested water from some gold mines pump outs, and it is often of quality higher than most city drinking water. In fact it is worth bottling, in that it has lower heavy metals such as arsenic and lead than many brands of bottled water!
Tastes good too. Soft. No hardness.
Again you have to know your situations. I would not try this everywhere as there could be complications. But it goes to show that there is no hard and fast rule of mine waters or tailings effluents being dangerous.
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