Introduction to Metal Leaching and Acid Rock Drainage (Field School)

The goal of this long-running field course is to provide a practical understanding of metal leaching and acid rock drainage (ML/ARD), the major environmental and reclamation challenges faced by the mining industry.

ML/ARD is a multi-disciplinary subject, involving a large number of processes, each with demanding information requirements. It is also an applied science, with much of the current knowledge residing in company reports and with leading industry practitioners and regulators. The course will provide a basic understanding of the procedures used to assess and prevent potential ML/ARD impacts. Much of time will be spent touring mines in the Northwest BC area: GoldCorp’s Equity Silver mine, Imperial’s Huckleberry mine, Xstrata's Bell mine and Silver Standard’s Duthie mine. These mines are world leaders in ML/ARD mitigation and the tours will allow participants to observe state of the art ML/ARD practices. Participants will gain experience in how ML/ARD test work is conducted and mitigation plans are developed, and the challenges that are encountered. In addition to the mine tours, ML/ARD practices and the underlying theory will be illustrated using case studies drawn from the instructors’ experience with mines in Canada and throughout the world.