Decommissioning of mines, sustainable development policies and environmental solutions: Brazil and Canada

Abstract

Decommissioning was a term formerly used to nuclear facilities, that can be used nowadays concerning the end of mining activity, the management of residues, effluents, waste rock and tailings, and the final conditions of the area taken into account its next use. Aiming at the compromise between present generation and future ones, new environmental policies for the mineral sector as well as for mining technologies have been discussed for many countries. Discussions about sustainable development .for the mining sector are really advanced in Canada, as a result of the aliance between governmental agencies and mining companies. New policies and technologies, at the stage of decommissioning, have been playing a very important role. Some environmental problems have been considerad more serious than others, such as acid mine drainage which represents an impact for a longtime. Brazil is also a rich country in mineral resources where the mining actlvity plays a very important role. The national environmental policy does not contemplate yet, very deeply, this stage of decommissioning of mines and the acid mine drainage generation. Since the beginning of the mining activity, it is important to consider the actions taken until the decommissioning, aiming at minimize the environmental impacts and reach the minimum level of emission. This article presents a reflection about Canadian and Brazilian initiatives and their contribution to this discussion.