28 Cyanide MGMT Gold Extraction

THE MANAG EMENT OF CYANI D E
I N GOLD EX T R AC T I ON
INTERNATI ONAL COUNCI L ON
METALS AND THE ENVI RONMENT
THE MANAG EMENT OF CYANI D E
I N GOLD EX T R AC T I ON
by
Mark J. Logsdon, MSc
Karen Hagelstein, PhD, CI H
Terry I . Mudder, PhD
T
he I nternati onal Counci l on Metal s and the Envi ronment (I CME) has publ i shed
thi s document as part of i ts ongoi ng efforts to provi de i nformati on on envi ron-
mental and rel ated heal th matters affecti ng the mi ni ng and metal s sector. The
contents of I CME publ i cati ons range from general and techni cal i nformati on to di scus-
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appreci ates suggesti ons regardi ng other i ssues of publ i c i mportance for possi bl e future
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opment and i mpl ementati on of sound envi ronmental and heal th pol i ci es and practi ces
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The Management of Cyanide in Gold Extraction, by Mark J. Logsdon, Karen Hagel stei n
and Terry I . Mudder.
Fi rst Pri nti ng, Apri l 1999.
I SBN 1-895720-27-3
T H E M A N A G E M E N T
O F C YA N I D E
I N G O L D
E X T R A C T I O N
by
Mark J. Logsdon, MSc
Karen Hagelstein, PhD, CIH
Terry I. Mudder, PhD
INTERNATI ONAL COUNCI L ON
METALS AND THE ENVI RONMENT
T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S
Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .iii
Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .v
1. What Is Cyanide? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
2. Natural Occurrences of Cyanide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
3. Industrial Uses of Cyanide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
4. Cyanide Use in Gold Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
The Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
5. Production and Handling of Cyanide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
6. Cyanide in Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Free Cyanide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Cyanide Complexes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
Weak and Strong Cyanide Complexes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
Analysing and Monitoring Cyanide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
7. Attenuation of Cyanide Concentrations in the . . . . . . . .
Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
Cyanide Solution Treatment and Re-Use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
8. Evaluating and Managing Risks of Cyanide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25
Health and Environmental Impacts of Cyanide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26
Toxicity and Epidemiology of Cyanide in Humans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26
Worker Exposure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
Environmental Toxicology and Impacts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
9. Risk Management for Cyanide in the Mining Industry . . .31
Management Systems and Research and Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Product Stewardship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Conservation and Recycling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
Regulations and Voluntary Programs Addressing Worker Safety and
Public Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
10. Risk Communication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35
11. Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
i
Table of Contents
FI GURES, TABLES AND BOXES
Fi gure 1 Porti on of Worl d Cyani de Producti on Used i n Mi ni ng . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Fi gure 2 Gol d Producti on . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
Fi gure 3 CN
-
/HCN Equi l i bri um wi th pH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Fi gure 4 The Cyani de Cycl e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
Fi gure 5 Exampl e of Cyani de Degradati on i n a Shal l ow Pond . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
Tabl e 1 Cyani de Concentrati ons i n Sel ected Pl ants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Tabl e 2 Anal yses of Barren Sol uti ons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
Tabl e 3 Natural Degradati on of Cyani de i n Tai l i ngs I mpoundments . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
Box 1 Hi story of Cyani de Use i n Mi ni ng . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
i i
The Management of Cyanide in Gold Extraction
Foreword
T
he mi ni ng i ndustry, and i n parti cul ar the gol d mi ni ng i ndustry, has been usi ng
cyani de i n i ts producti on processes for many decades. Whi l e cyani de i s common-
l y percei ved as bei ng a deadl y substance, i t i s i n fact a wi del y used chemi cal that
i s essenti al to the modern worl d. The key to i ts safe use i s the i mpl ementati on of sound
management practi ces.
Whi l e publ i c concern about cyani de i s val i d and i ndeed understandabl e, much of the
recent medi a attenti on and publ i c reacti on regardi ng the use of cyani de i n mi ni ng oper-
ati ons has ari sen due to a l ack of understandi ng of the nature of cyani de and i ts effects
on heal th and the envi ronment. Whi l e there i s consi derabl e techni cal i nformati on avai l -
abl e to those who produce, transport and use cyani de, easy-to-understand i nformati on
has not heretofore been provi ded for a l ess techni cal audi ence. I n an attempt to remedy
thi s si tuati on and to address publ i c concern about the use of cyani de i n gol d extracti on,
the I nternati onal Counci l on Metal s and the Envi ronment has commi ssi oned the present
document.
The Management of Cyanide in Gold Extraction gi ves an overvi ew of the chemi cal s uses
and ri sks, wi th speci al emphasi s on i ts use i n the recovery of gol d. The publ i cati on
begi ns by descri bi ng the properti es of cyani de and i ts general uses i n i ndustry, then
moves on to address more speci fi cal l y the l i fe cycl e of cyani de i n the mi ni ng envi ron-
menti ts producti on, use i n mi neral extracti on, and general and envi ronmental chem-
i stry. After presenti ng thi s i nformati on, the publ i cati on expl ai ns how the pri nci pl es of
ri sk assessment, ri sk management and ri sk communi cati on contri bute to the safe use of
cyani de i n gol d recovery.
Thi s work has been prepared by recogni zed experts and shoul d be a useful reference for
anyone i nvol ved i n deci si on maki ng rel ated to the presence of cyani de i n mi ni ng opera-
ti ons, whether from a l ocal or gl obal perspecti ve. I t i s hoped that i nternati onal regul a-
tors, pol i cy makers, communi ty l eaders and al l other i nterested readers, i ncl udi ng those
engaged i n the mi ni ng and metal s i ndustry, wi l l fi nd the work to be both bal anced and
i nformati ve, and thereby gai n a better understandi ng of the characteri sti cs of cyani de
and i ts uni que rol e i n gol d recovery.
Gary Nash
Secretary General
I CME
i i i
Foreword
Executive Summary
Cyanide is the chemical of choice for gold recovery.
Cyani de i s one of onl y a few chemi cal reagents that wi l l di ssol ve gol d i n water. I t i s
a common i ndustri al chemi cal that i s readi l y avai l abl e at a reasonabl y l ow cost. For
both techni cal and economi c reasons, cyani de i s the chemi cal of choi ce for the
recovery of gol d from ores. Cyani de has been used i n metal extracti on si nce 1887
and i s now safel y used and managed i n gol d recovery around the worl d. Gol d mi n-
i ng operati ons use very di l ute sol uti ons of sodi um cyani de, typi cal l y i n the range of
0.01% and 0.05% cyani de (100 to 500 parts per mi l l i on).
Most of the cyanide produced is used as a basic building block for the chemical
industry.
Cyani de i s produced i n l arge amounts (about 1.4 mi l l i on tonnes each year) as one of
a few basi c compounds used chi efl y to synthesi ze a wi de range of i ndustri al organ-
i c chemi cal s such as nyl on and acryl i cs. Gol d recovery accounts for approxi matel y
18% of total worl d cyani de producti on.
Cyanide is produced naturally in a number of microorganisms, insects and plants.
Cyani de i s a natural l y occurri ng mol ecul e of carbon and ni trogen. I t exi sted on Earth
before l i fe began and was one of the fundamental bui l di ng bl ocks i n the evol uti on of
l i fe. Low concentrati ons of cyani de are present i n nature, for exampl e i n many
i nsects and pl ants, i ncl udi ng a wi de range of vegetabl es, frui ts and nuts, where i t
provi des protecti on agai nst predators. I n addi ti on, cyani de i s present i n much of the
everyday envi ronment to whi ch we are exposed, for exampl e i n road sal t and auto-
mobi l e exhaust and as a stabi l i zer i n tabl e sal t.
Cyanide is not persistent.
One of the major heal th and envi ronmental concerns wi th some syntheti c chemi cal s
i s that they do not decompose readi l y and can thereby accumul ate i n the food chai n.
Cyani de, however, i s transformed by natural physi cal , chemi cal and bi ol ogi cal
processes i nto other, l ess toxi c chemi cal s. Si nce cyani de oxi di zes when exposed to
ai r or other oxi dants, i t decomposes and does not persi st. Whi l e i t i s a deadl y poi son
when i ngested i n a suffi ci entl y hi gh dose, i t does not gi ve ri se to chroni c heal th or
envi ronmental probl ems when present i n l ow concentrati ons.
Cyanide is attenuated through natural processes.
Over ti me, natural processes such as exposure to sunl i ght can reduce the concen-
trati on of toxi c forms of cyani de i n sol uti ons to very l ow val ues.
v
Executive Summary
The risks of cyanide production, use and disposal can be well managed.
Responsi bl e compani es i n both the chemi cal i ndustry and the mi ni ng i ndustry
empl oy stri ngent ri sk management systems to prevent i njury or damage from the
use of cyani de. Cyani de i n mi ni ng sol uti ons i s col l ected, ei ther to be recycl ed or
destroyed, after gol d i s removed. Managi ng ri sks associ ated wi th the use of cyani de
i nvol ves sound engi neeri ng, careful moni tori ng and good management practi ces i n
order to prevent and mi ti gate potenti al rel eases of cyani de to the envi ronment.
Communicating information about the risks of cyanide to employees and the
public is essential to sound management practices.
The envi ronmental fate of cyani de has been wel l studi ed. Cyani de i s hi ghl y regul at-
ed and i ts ri sk management i s wel l documented. Ri sk communi cati on provi des i nfor-
mati on about cyani de both wi thi n the operati ng pl ant and external l y, to the publ i c.
Communi cati on of i nformati on to the i nternal staff i s the fi rst step i n communi cat-
i ng the nature and extent of ri sk to the general publ i c. Effecti ve communi cati on and
emergency pl anni ng programs shoul d al so be coordi nated wi th the proper l ocal
authori ti es.
vi
SECTION 1
What Is Cyanide?
C
yani de i s a general term for a group of chemi cal s contai ni ng carbon and ni trogen.
Cyani de compounds i ncl ude both natural l y occurri ng and human-made (anthro-
pogeni c) chemi cal s. There are more than 2,000 natural sources of cyani de,
i ncl udi ng vari ous speci es of arthropods, i nsects, bacteri a, al gae, fungi and hi gher pl ants.
The pri nci pal human-made cyani de forms are gaseous hydrogen cyani de and sol i d sodi -
um and potassi um cyani de. Because of i ts uni que properti es, cyani de i s used i n the man-
ufacture of metal parts and numerous common organi c products such as pl asti cs,
syntheti c fabr i cs, fer ti l i zer s,
herbi ci des, dyes and pharma-
ceuti cal s.
There i s justi fi abl e publ i c con-
cern about the use of cyani de
i n i ndustri al setti ngs. Cyani de
i s a toxi c substance and can be
l ethal i f i ngested or i nhal ed i n
suffi ci ent amounts. Thi s i s al so
true for many other chemi cal s
such as gasol i ne and common
househol d cl eani ng suppl i es.
As i s the case for the thousands
of other chemi cal s used i n our
modern i ndustri al processes,
knowl edge, pr oper handl i ng
procedures and a responsi bl e
atti tude are cri ti cal to the safe
and benefi ci al use of cyani de.
Mi ni ng i s one i ndustri al acti vi -
ty that uses a si gni fi cant
amount of cyani deabout
20% of total producti on. Si nce
1887, cyani de sol uti ons have been used pri mari l y to extract gol d and si l ver from ores that
otherwi se coul d not be mi ned effecti vel y. I n addi ti on, cyani de i s used i n l ow concentra-
ti ons as a fl otati on reagent to ai d i n the recovery of base metal s such as l ead, copper
and zi nc.
1
What Is Cyanide?
Microscopic view of sodium cyanide crystals.
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SECTION 2
Natural Occurrences of Cyanide
C
arbon and ni trogen, the two el ements that make up cyani de, are present al l
around us. Together they make up al most 80% of the ai r we breathe, and both are
present i n the organi c mol ecul es that are the basi s of al l l i fe forms. Hydrogen
cyani de was formed i n the earl i est stages of the devel opment of our pl anet as a precur-
sor to ami no aci ds, from whi ch l i fe on Earth evol ved. Cyani de i s formed natural l y. I t i s
produced and used by pl ants and ani mal s as a protecti ve mechani sm that makes them
an unattracti ve food source. Many organi sms may ei ther adapt to the presence of cyani de
or detoxi fy i t.
A natural source of hydrogen cyani de (HCN) i s a sugar-l i ke compound cal l ed amygdal i n,
whi ch exi sts i n many frui ts, vegetabl es, seeds and nuts, i ncl udi ng apri cots, bean sprouts,
cashews, cherri es, chestnuts, corn, ki dney beans, l enti l s, nectari nes, peaches, peanuts,
pecans, pi stachi os, potatoes, soybeans and wal nuts. I n the kernel of bi tter al mond, there
i s about 1 mg of HCN as amygdal i n. Tabl e 1 presents data on the amount of cyani de
present i n a vari ety of other foodstuffs.
3
Natural Occurences of Cyanide
T A B L E 1 . C y a n i d e C o n cen tra ti o n s i n S elected P la n ts
Plant Species Concentration (mg.kg
-1
)
Cassava (sweet vari eti es)
l eaves 377500
roots 138
dri ed roots 46<100
mash 81
Bamboo ti p Max. 8,000
Li ma bean (Burma) 2,100
Al mond (Bi tter) 2802,500
Sorghum (young pl ant, whol e) Max. 2,500
Source: Excerpted from Eisler, 1991
Cyani de compounds are produced i n thousands of pl ant speci es and i n other l i fe forms.
I n some pl ants, cyani de occurs i n concentrati ons that woul d be judged hazardous i f
they were associ ated wi th manufactured sources. Pl ants such as al fal fa, sorghum and
cassava are known sources of cyani de poi soni ng to l i vestock and humans.
I n addi ti on to these natural l y occurri ng forms of cyani de, cyani de compounds are al so
present i n such everyday anthropogeni c sources as automobi l e exhaust, ci garette smoke,
and even road and tabl e sal t.
4
SECTION 3
Industrial Uses of Cyanide
C
yani de i s one of the mai n bui l di ng bl ocks for the chemi cal i ndustry because of i ts
composi ti on of carbon and ni trogenboth common el ementsand the ease wi th
whi ch i t reacts wi th other substances.
Over one mi l l i on tonnes of cyani de, representi ng about 80% of total producti on, are used
annual l y i n the producti on of organi c chemi cal s such as ni tri l e, nyl on and acryl i c pl as-
ti cs. Other i ndustri al appl i cati ons i ncl ude el ectropl ati ng, metal processi ng, steel harden-
i ng, photographi c appl i cati ons and syntheti c rubber producti on.
I ron cyani des are often used i n road sal t as an anti -caki ng addi ti ve. Hydrogen cyani de
vapour has been wi del y used to extermi nate rodents and l arge predators, and i n horti -
cul tural practi ce to control i nsect pests that have devel oped resi stance to other pesti -
ci des.
I n addi ti on, cyani de i s used i n pharmaceuti cal s such as the anti cancer substance l aetri l e
and the bl ood pressurereduci ng drug ni troprussi de. Cyani de compounds are al so used
i n surgi cal dressi ngs that promote heal i ng and reduce scarri ng.
The remai ni ng 20% of cyani de producti on i s used to manufacture sodi um cyani de, a
sol i d form of cyani de that i s rel ati vel y easy and safe to handl e. Of thi s, 90% (i .e. 18% of
total producti on) i s used i n mi ni ng around the worl d, mostl y for gol d recovery.
F I G U R E 1 . P o rti o n o f Wo rld C y a n i d e P ro d u cti o n U sed i n M i n i n g
5
Industrial Uses of Cyanide
20%
USED
FOR
SODIUM
CYANIDE
18%
USED IN MINING
TOTAL WORLD PRODUCTION
SECTION 4
Cyanide Use in Gold Production
O
ne of the reasons for the hi gh val ue pl aced on gol d i s i ts resi stance to attack by
most chemi cal s. One excepti on i s cyani de, or more speci fi cal l y, a cyani de-
contai ni ng sol uti on, whi ch di ssol ves the preci ous metal .
Cyani de i s used i n mi ni ng to extract gol d (and si l ver) from ores, parti cul arl y l ow-grade
ores and ores that cannot be readi l y treated through si mpl e physi cal processes such as
crushi ng and gravi ty separati on.
F I G U R E 2 . G o ld P ro d u cti o n
7
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The Process
The use of water-based sol uti ons to extract and recover metal s such as gol d i s cal l ed
hydrometal l urgy. Gol d mi ni ng operati ons use very di l ute sol uti ons of sodi um cyani de
(NaCN), typi cal l y i n the range of 0.01% and 0.05% cyani de (100 to 500 parts per mi l l i on).
The process of metal di ssol uti on i s cal l ed l eachi ng. The sodi um cyani de di ssol ves i n
water where, under mi l dl y oxi di zi ng condi ti ons, i t di ssol ves the gol d contai ned i n the
ore. The resul tant gol d-beari ng sol uti on i s cal l ed pregnant sol uti on. Ei ther zi nc metal
or acti vated car bon i s
then added to the preg-
nant sol uti on to recover
the gol d by removi ng i t
fr om the sol uti on. The
resi dual or barren sol u-
ti on (i .e. barren of gol d)
may be r e-ci r cul ated to
extract more gol d or rout-
ed to a waste treatment
faci l i ty. Appr oaches to
treati ng thi s waste sol u-
ti on of cyani de are di s-
cussed i n Secti on 7.
Ther e ar e two gener al
appr oaches to l eachi ng
gol d fr om mi ned or e
usi ng cyani de: tank l each-
i ng and heap l eachi ng.
Tank l eachi ng i s the con-
venti onal method, i n
whi ch gol d or e i s
crushed and ground to a
si ze of l ess than one mi l l i metre i n di ameter. I n some cases, a porti on of the gol d can be
recovered from thi s fi nel y ground materi al as di screte parti cl es of gol d usi ng gravi ty-sep-
arati on techni ques. I n most cases, the fi nel y ground ore i s di rectl y l eached i n tanks to
di ssol ve the gol d i n a cyani de sol uti on. When gol d i s recovered i n a conventi onal pl ant
wi th l eachi ng i n tanks, the barren sol uti on wi l l be col l ected al ong wi th the sol i d wastes
(tai l i ngs) i n a tai l i ngs i mpoundment system. There, part of the sol uti on wi l l remai n wi th-
i n the pores of the settl ed tai l i ngs and part wi l l decant and col l ect i n a pond on top of the
tai l i ngs, from whi ch i t i s recycl ed back to the pl ant. I n most pl ants, because i mpuri ti es
8
Gold recovery from cyanide solution using activated carbon
(charcoal).
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bui l d up i n these sol uti ons, some of the cyani de-beari ng sol uti ons must be pumped to a
treatment system for di sposal (see Secti on 7).
Recent techni cal advances enabl e the heap-l eachi ng of some gol d ores. Wi th thi s
method, the ore i s crushed to l ess than a few centi metres i n di ameter and pl aced i n l arge
pi l es or heaps. A sol uti on of cyani de i s tri ckl ed through these heaps to di ssol ve the gol d.
When heap-l eachi ng technol ogy i s used to extract gol d, the barren sol uti on i s col l ected
i n a pond, from whi ch i t i s commonl y recharged wi th cyani de and recycl ed back i nto the
l eachi ng system.
The modern gol d i ndustry uses cyani de al most excl usi vel y as the l eachi ng agent for gol d.
Other compl exi ng agents such as thi ourea, chl ori des and other hal i des have been used
to extract gol d from ores, but these are not general l y cost-effecti ve and present thei r own
envi ronmental and heal th concerns. Cyani de compl exes are more stabl e and effecti ve,
and do not requi re addi ti onal aggressi ve chemi cal s to effect gol d recovery. Cyani de has
9
Construction of a leach pad at Pikes Peak, Colorado, USA.
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been used i n mi ni ng for over a century (see box). An ol der techni que for gol d recovery,
whi ch i s no l onger used i n modern gol d pl ants, i s amal gamati on wi th l i qui d mercury. I n
some devel opi ng countri es, arti sanal mi ners sti l l use l i qui d mercury as a means of com-
pl exi ng gol d from smal l mi ne worki ngs. Thi s practi ce i s di scouraged, however, as poor
management of both l i qui d mercury and the vapour ari si ng from vol ati l i zi ng mercury
contri butes to seri ous heal th probl ems among arti sanal mi ners.
10
Box 1. History of Cyanide Use in Mining
While environmental concerns over the use of cyanide in mining have become more
public only in the last few years, there actually is a very long history of cyanide use
in metallurgical and related processes all around the world. Dippel and Diesbach dis-
covered Prussian blue (iron ferrocyanide) in 1704. The earliest well-documented
work was Scheeles studies of solubility of gold in cyanide solutions dating from 1783
in Sweden. Gold-cyanide chemistry was studied actively in the mid-19th century in
England (Faraday), Germany (Elsner), and Russia (Elkington and Bagration). By
1840, Elkington held a patent for the use of potassium cyanide solutions for electro-
plating gold and silver. Elsner led the evaluation of the role of oxygen in gold disso-
lution using cyanide solutions, and Elsners Equation describing the extraction of
gold from ores by cyanide was known by 1846.
Patents formalized by McArthur and the Forrest brothers in 1887 and 1888 effec-
tively established the current cyanidation process, the use of cyanide dissolution and
precipitation using zinc. However, there were still earlier patents in the USA for
cyanide leaching (Rae in 1869) and recovery from chlorinated solutions using char-
coal (Davis in 1880). The first commercial-scale cyanidation plant began operating at
the Crown Mine in New Zealand in 1889, and by 1904 cyanidation processes were
also in place in South Africa, Australia, United States, Mexico and France. Therefore,
by the turn of the century, the use of cyanide to extract gold from low-grade ores was
a fully established metallurgical technology.
SECTION 5
Production and Handling
of Cyanide
C
yani de i s produced i ndustri al l y i n one of two ways: as a by-product of the manu-
facture of acryl i c fi bres and certai n pl asti cs, or by combi ni ng natural gas and
ammoni a at hi gh temperatures and pressures to produce hydrogen cyani de (HCN)
gas. Subsequentl y, hydrogen cyani de gas can be combi ned wi th sodi um hydroxi de
(NaOH) to produce sodi um cyani de (NaCN) and water (H
2
O). The water i s then removed
by dryi ng and fi l teri ng, and the sodi um cyani de i s formed i nto sol i d, whi te bri quettes that
are about 10 centi metres square.
The sol i d sodi um cyani de bri quettes are mai ntai ned under control l ed temperature and
moi sture. At the manufacturi ng l ocati on, the bri quettes are packaged i n l abel l ed, seal ed
contai ners to protect the bri quettes from both crushi ng and moi sture. The contai ners
may be di sposabl e pl ywood boxes wi th non-returnabl e l i ners, non-returnabl e steel
drums, or re-useabl e steel bi ns. I n some ci rcumstances, the bri quettes are di ssol ved and
the cyani de sol uti on i s transported as a l i qui d i n speci al l y desi gned tanker trucks.
Al l shi pments of sodi um cyani de are accompani ed by Materi al Safety Data Sheets
(MSDSs) that provi de the chemi stry and toxi ci ty of sodi um cyani de, i nstructi ons i n case
of acci dents, emergency tel ephone numbers for assi stance and addi ti onal i nformati on
from the manufacturer. Al l shi pments are i nventori ed as materi al l eaves the producer,
and the i nventory i s checked agai nst del i very records to ensure proper survei l l ance at al l
ti mes.
There are three pri mary producers of sol i d, l i qui d and gaseous cyani de i n the worl d:
Dupont, i n the Uni ted States, I CI , i n Engl and, and Degussa Corporati on, i n Germany.
Annual worl dwi de producti on i s approxi matel y 1.4 mi l l i on tonnes of HCN.
1
As menti oned
earl i er, 20% of the total HCN producti on i s used to produce sodi um cyani de (NaCN) and
the remai ni ng 80% i s used i n numerous other i ndustri al acti vi ti es such as the produc-
ti on of chemi cal s. Sodi um cyani de i s al so produced i n the USA by FMC Corporati on.
The three pri mary producers are major i nternati onal chemi cal manufacturers that
understand thei r responsi bi l i ty for thei r products. For exampl e, formal corporate pol i ci es
11
Production and Handling of Cyanide
1 1996 amounts. Usage i n mi ni ng has remai ned essenti al l y constant for the l ast decade.
ensure that cyani de i s sol d onl y to compani es that have the abi l i ty and commi tment to
protect workers, the publ i c and the envi ronment. The manufacturers contract onl y wi th
sel ected carri ers that have records of transportati on safety consi stent wi th the manufac-
turers i nternal standards. The manufacturers mai ntai n a staff of safety and transporta-
ti on speci al i sts to work wi th purchasers and others i n the areas of trai ni ng, faci l i ty desi gn
and rel ated safety measures.
Mi ni ng compani es store sodi um cyani de i n secure areas that are kept dry, cool , dark and
venti l ated. I n the storage area, cyani de packages are pl aced on pal l ets i n thei r ori gi nal
contai ners above waterti ght fl oors, usual l y made of concrete, wi th proper contai nment
i n the unl i kel y event of spi l l age. Regardl ess of the contai ner type, empty contai ners are
washed and the ri nse water i s used i n the si tes gol d recovery pl ant (to take advantage of
12
Storage of drums containing sodium cyanide.
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the smal l amounts of cyani de that coul d be
pr esent) or i s pr ocessed thr ough the
wastewater treatment system pri or to bei ng
di scharged under control l ed and permi tted
condi ti ons.
Mi ni ng compani es hol d speci al trai ni ng pro-
grams for al l empl oyees who work wi th or
around cyani de. They al so have materi al s
handl i ng and safety pl ans prepared by qual i -
fi ed i ndustri al hygi eni sts and supervi sed by
project safety offi cers. These heal th and safe-
ty pl ans assi gn empl oyee responsi bi l i ti es and
control the handl i ng and use of sodi um
cyani de from i ts arri val at the mi ne si te
through to the metal l urgi cal process. Area
gas moni tor s, pr oper pr otecti ve cl othi ng,
sel f-contai ned breathi ng apparatus and fi rst-
ai d stati ons equi pped wi th eyewash and
shower faci l i ti es are uti l i zed by cyani de-han-
dl i ng oper ati ons at mi nes. Compani es
i ndustri al hygi ene programs i ncl ude annual
trai ni ng, access to al l MSDSs and ai r moni -
tori ng to ensure worker safety, as wel l as
procedures for documenti ng al l heal th and
safety i nformati on and i nci dents at mi ne
si tes.
Modern i ndustri al hygi ene programs at gol d mi ni ng operati ons have been effecti ve at
mi ni mi zi ng acci dental cyani de poi soni ng at mi ne si tes. I ndeed, a search of i ndustri al
acci dent records i n Austral i a, Canada, New Zeal and and the Uni ted States has reveal ed
onl y three acci dental deaths i n whi ch cyani de was i mpl i cated at gol d mi ne si tes i n the
past 100 years. The fi rst was not di rectl y rel ated to gol d recovery, the second i nvol ved
entry i nto an encl osed spacea fatal mi stake, and the thi rd was not concl usi vel y attri b-
uted to cyani de.
2
13
Production and Handling of Cyanide
2 Both i nci dents were found i n the 107-year fatal i ty database of the Ontari o Mi ni ster of Labour. I n 1952, a
bl acksmi th at the MacLeod-Cockshutt Gol d Mi nes di ed due to cyani de poi soni ng fol l owi ng an expl osi on of
mol ten cyani de; he had been prepari ng a bath of mel ted sodi um cyani de to case-harden a wrench. I n 1961,
a worker at the Hal l nor Mi nes Mi l l di ed of poi soni ng from hydrocyani c gas after cl i mbi ng i nto an agi tator
tank to retri eve fl ake cyani de he had i nadvertentl y thrown i nto the tank. I n 1982, a l abourer at an Ari zona
gol d recovery operati on col l apsed at work and di ed fi ve days l ater. Cyani de was suspected, but the evi dence
as to how the worker became exposed to cyani de was i nconcl usi ve.
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On-site assistance and safety training
are provided to gold mines by cyanide
producers.
SECTION 6
Cyanide in Solutions
A
fter gol d i s extracted vi a the hydrometal l urgi cal processes, three pri nci pal types of
cyani de compounds may be present i n wastewater or process sol uti ons: free
cyani de, weakl y compl exed cyani de and strongl y compl exed cyani de. Together,
the three cyani de compounds consti tute total cyani de. An understandi ng of the chem-
i stry of these three types of cyani de provi des i nsi ghts i nto thei r behavi our wi th respect to
safety and the envi ronment.
Free Cyanide
Free cyani de i s the term used to descri be both the cyani de i on (CN
-
) that i s di ssol ved
i n the process water and any hydrogen cyani de (HCN) that i s formed i n sol uti on. The
sol i d sodi um cyani de bri quettes di ssol ve i n water to form sodi um i on and the cyani de
ani on (CN
-
). The cyani de
ani on then combi nes wi th
hydrogen i on to form mol ecu-
l ar HCN. The concentrati on of
hydrogen i on i n the process
water i s ex pr essed by the
fami l i ar par ameter pH.
3
Nearl y al l free cyani de i s pres-
ent as HCN when ther e i s
ampl e hydrogen i on present,
(i .e. at a pH val ue of 8 or l ess).
Thi s HCN can then vol ati l i ze
and be di spersed i nto the ai r.
When the pH i s greater than
10.5, there i s l i ttl e hydrogen
i on present and nearl y al l of
the free cyani de i s present as
CN
-
. Under normal condi ti ons
of temperature and pressure,
the concentrati ons of HCN and
CN
-
are equal at a pH val ue of
approxi matel y 9.4.
15
3 When the pH of a sol uti on i s 7, the sol uti on i s sai d to be neutral . Sol uti ons wi th pH l ess than 7 are sai d to be
aci di c, whereas those wi th pH greater than 7 are sai d to be al kal i ne.
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
11 10 9 8 7 6
%

C
N
-
CN
-
HCN
pH
%

H
C
N
F I G U R E 3 . C N
-
/H C N E q u i li b ri u m wi th p H
Source: Scott and Ingles, 1981.
These forms of free cyani de are i mportant because they are consi dered to be the most
toxi c cyani des. However, they al so happen to be the forms that are readi l y removed from
sol uti ons through both engi neered treatment processes and natural attenuati on mecha-
ni sms. The bi ol ogi cal , chemi cal and physi cal processes that affect cyani de concentra-
ti ons i n water, soi l and ai r have been extensi vel y studi ed duri ng the l ast two decades, so
that thei r behavi our i n the envi ronment i s wel l understood.
One of the most i mportant reacti ons affecti ng free cyani de concentrati on i s the vol ati l i za-
ti on of HCN, whi ch, l i ke most gases, wi l l separate from water and escape i nto the ai r.
Free cyani de i s not persi stent i n most surface waters because the pH of such waters i s
usual l y about 8, so that HCN vol ati l i zes and di sperses. Hydrogen cyani des vol ati l i ty and
subsequent transformati on to beni gn compounds i n ai r are i mportant because they act
as a natural mechani sm for control l i ng free cyani de concentrati ons i n waste and process
waters at mi nes.
Natural processes al one can reduce the free
cyani de concentrati on from sol uti ons i n
areas open to the atmosphere i n the gol d
producti on faci l i ti es, such as process ponds
and tai l i ngs i mpoundments, to very l ow val -
uesoften to l evel s bel ow regul atory con-
cern or even the l i mi ts of detecti on.
I n the gol d pl ant, however, operators mai n-
tai n the sol uti on pH at val ues near 10.5 i n
order to prevent vol ati l i zati on. Thi s pre-
serves cyani de i n the gol d extracti on system
where i t i s needed and at the same ti me
l i mi ts the ri sk of worker i nhal ati on expo-
sure to hi gh concentrati ons of HCN gas i n a
confi ned space.
Cyanide Complexes
Whi l e cyani de-beari ng sol uti ons are used i n mi ni ng because they react wi th gol d, they
al so react wi th other metal s. Gol d ores al most al ways contai n other metal s, i ncl udi ng
i ron, copper, zi nc, ni ckel and si l ver as wel l as other el ements such as arseni c. I n most
ore bodi es, the concentrati ons of other metal s typi cal l y exceed the concentrati on of gol d
by several orders of magni tude. For exampl e, a l ow-grade gol d ore sui tabl e for cyani de
l eachi ng mi ght contai n 0.5 to 1 gram of gol d per tonne (0.5 to 1 part per mi l l i on [ppm]
gol d); i n contrast, the i ron concentrati on of average crustal rocks i s about 3.5% (35,000
ppm). Metal s such as copper, zi nc and ni ckel may be present i n concentrati ons rangi ng
16
Control centre for gold recovery plant
(cyanidation).
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from tens to thousands of parts per mi l l i on. Tabl e 2 shows that si gni fi cant amounts of
other metal s may be di ssol ved when ores contai ni ng them are l eached wi th cyani de
sol uti ons.
Chemi cal anal yses of process sol uti ons and wastewater deri ved from the processi ng
i ndi cate that most of the cyani de i n sol uti on i s chemi cal l y l i nked wi th metal s other than
the smal l amounts of gol d or si l ver. When chemi cal el ements combi ne i n sol uti on to
form sol ubl e speci es, chemi sts refer to them as compl exes. There i s a wi de range of
chemi cal and physi cal i nteracti ons between the components of compl exes. Some com-
pl exes are very stabl e, whereas others are easi l y destroyed. Anal yti cal chemi sts are abl e
to defi ne the rel ati ve stabi l i ty of cyani de compl exes of di fferent metal s wi th great preci -
si on. The eval uati on of the quanti ty and types of cyani de i s i mportant to al l aspects of
cyani de use. I t i s parti cul arl y i mportant to be abl e to di sti ngui sh both accuratel y and pre-
ci sel y between the vari ous cyani de compounds to ensure the sel ecti on of an effecti ve
detoxi fi cati on methodol ogy.
17
CONCENTRATION RANGE
milligrams per litre
5
(mg.L
-1
)
Total Cyani de 502000
Arseni c 0115
Copper 0.1300
I ron 0.1100
Lead 00.1
Mol ybdenum 04.7
Ni ckel 0.335
Zi nc 13740
4 Scott, J. S., Status of Gold Mill Waste Effluent Treatment, Report to CANMET, Natural Resources Canada,
March 1993.
5 I n envi ronmental studi es, concentrati ons of cyani de and other sol utes i n sol uti ons are ordi nari l y presented
i n terms of mass per uni t vol ume, or someti mes as the di mensi onl ess uni t part per mi l l i on (ppm).
Concentrati ons i n mi l l i grams per l i tre (mg.L
-1
) are the same as concentrati ons i n grams per cubi c metre
(g.m
-3
), and both of these are essenti al l y i denti cal to concentrati ons i n ppm (because the densi ty of sol uti ons
i s usual l y very cl ose to 1 ki l ogram per l i tre [kg.L
-1
]).
T A B L E 2 . A n a ly ses o f B a rren S o lu ti o n s
4
Weak and Strong Cyanide Complexes
Conventi onal l y, cyani de chemi sts di sti ngui sh weak from strong cyani de compl exes.
The weak cyani de compl exes, often referred to as weak aci d di ssoci abl e or WAD
cyani de, can di ssoci ate i n sol uti on to produce envi ronmental l y si gni fi cant concentrati ons
of free cyani de. The weak compl exes i ncl ude cyani de compl exes of cadmi um, copper,
ni ckel , si l ver and zi nc. The degree to whi ch these compl exes di ssoci ate i s dependent
l argel y on the pH of the sol uti on.
Strong cyani de compl exes, on the other hand, degrade much more sl owl y than WAD
cyani de under normal chemi cal and physi cal condi ti ons. Compl exes of cyani de wi th
gol d, cobal t and i ron are strong and stabl e i n sol uti on. Thi s stabi l i ty of the gol dcyani de
compl ex i s a key factor i n the use of cyani de for the extracti on of gol d from ores. Once
gol d enters i nto sol uti on ti ed to the cyani de, i t remai ns compl exed wi th the cyani de unti l
process condi ti ons are changed i n order to remove i t from sol uti on. Cobal t i s present
onl y i n trace amounts but i ron i s vi rtual l y ubi qui tous i n geol ogi cal materi al s. For most
mi ni ng si tuati ons, the strong compl exes of cyani de are predomi nantl y i ron cyani des.
The rate at whi ch compl exes di ssoci ate and rel ease free cyani de i nto sol uti on depends
on several other factors, i ncl udi ng the i ni ti al concentrati on of the cyani de compl ex,
the temperature, the pH of the sol uti on, and the i ntensi ty of l i ght, especi al l y ul travi ol et
radi ati on.
Analysing and Monitoring Cyanide
Cyani de i s general l y measured by one of two anal yti cal methods: total cyani de anal ysi s
or WAD cyani de anal ysi s. The fi rst i s used to determi ne total cyani de i n sol uti ons, i ncl ud-
i ng free cyani de and metal -bound cyani des, such as the more stabl e, non-toxi c i ron
cyani des. The anal yti cal procedure for determi ni ng WAD cyani de i s used for free and
compl exed forms of cyani de, except i ron cyani de. An ol der but sti l l used al ternati ve
method to that of WAD cyani de anal ysi s i s cal l ed cyani de amenabl e to chl ori nati on.
Cyani de anal yses are needed for operati onal control , regul atory compl i ance and toxi ci -
ty eval uati on, as wel l as for publ i c i nformati on about the handl i ng of hazardous materi -
al s. Moni tori ng cyani de both duri ng and after the gol d recovery process i s essenti al to
good operati ng practi ce and the protecti on of both heal th and the envi ronment. Ri gorous
sampl i ng protocol s and anal yti cal procedures are requi red to ensure the qual i ty of i nfor-
mati on avai l abl e for deci si on maki ng. Thi s requi res excel l ent pl anni ng and performance
from trai ned personnel worki ng wi th wel l -desi gned and wel l -managed systems.
18
SECTION 7
Attenuation of Cyanide
Concentrations in the Environment
A
s expl ai ned i n Secti on 4, once gol d has been recovered, the sol uti on becomes bar-
ren of gol d but sti l l contai ns cyani de. The processes that decrease the concentra-
ti on of cyani de i n sol uti on, whether i n the natural envi ronment or i n engi neered
faci l i ti es, are cal l ed attenuati on. Vol ati l i zati on of HCN, whi ch reduces the concentra-
ti on of free cyani de i n sol uti on, i s the promi nent natural attenuati on process. Fi gure 4
provi des a schemati c representati on of the rel ati onshi ps between forms of cyani de and
the processes control l i ng them.
Over the past two decades, the chemi cal and mi ni ng i ndustri es have made major
advances i n handl i ng waste cyani de sol uti ons so that they wi l l not harm publ i c heal th
or the envi ronment. Two technol ogi es are used, often i n combi nati on: treatment and
recycl i ng.
Cyanide Solution Treatment and Re-use
Treatment: Four general forms of cyani de sol uti on treatment are i n use:
Natural degradati on
Chemi cal oxi dati on
Preci pi tati on
Bi odegradati on
I n addi ti on, several technol ogi es enabl e the re-use of cyani de through recycl i ng.
Natural degradation: The pri nci pal natural degradati on mechani sm i s vol ati l i zati on
wi th subsequent atmospheri c transformati ons to l ess toxi c chemi cal substances. Other
factors such as bi ol ogi cal oxi dati on, preci pi tati on and the effects of sunl i ght al so con-
tri bute to cyani de degradati on.
Cyani de speci es may be adsorbed on the surfaces of mi neral s or organi c carbon debri s
i n the soi l s of a pond embankment, i n a cl ay l i ner, or al ong a groundwater fl ow path. I n
soi l s, bacteri a assi mi l ate the cyani de through a vari ety of aerobi c and anaerobi c reac-
ti ons. I n some i nstances, the combi nati on of these processes of natural degradati on are
suffi ci ent to meet regul atory requi rements for di scharge of cyani de-contai ni ng sol uti ons.
19
Attenuation of Cyanide Concentrations in the Environment
I n tai l i ngs i mpoundments, the l arge surface area enabl es decomposi ti on of WAD
cyani de. Fi gure 5 i l l ustrates a typi cal si tuati on i n whi ch hal f of the total cyani de (CN
T
)
degraded natural l y i n l ess than three weeks from the i ni ti al concentrati on of 20 mi l -
l i grams per l i tre. The CN
T
di sappeared al most compl etel y wi thi n about 100 days.
Actual degradati on rates need to be determi ned through test work on a si te-speci fi c basi s
usi ng condi ti ons that mi mi c, as cl osel y as possi bl e, the types of sol uti on and the natural
processes that are l i kel y to occur at that l ocati on.
Tabl e 3 compi l es data from natural degradati on systems at a number of gol d mi nes
around the worl d. The val ues i n thi s tabl e demonstrate the abi l i ty of natural degradati on
to reduce the cyani de concentrati on of sol uti ons.
Chemical oxidationprocesses for cyani de treatment i ncl ude the SO
2
/Ai r process (devel -
oped by the Canadi an mi ni ng company I NCO) and the H
2
O
2
(hydrogen peroxi de)
20
F I G U R E 4 . T h e C y a n i d e C y cle
anaerobic biological
activity within
sediments
adsorption/desorption processes
all complexes subject
to biological oxidation
HSCN
2H
2
0
3H
2
HCN/CN
S
H
2
O
HCOONH
4
CH
4
+ NH
3
NH
3
+ CO
2
NH
3
+ H
2
S + CO
2
H
2
CH
4
+
CO
2
SEDIMENTS
CN
Fe(CN)
5
2
uv light
Fe(CN)
6
3
O
2
Fe
3+
NaFe [Fe(CN)
6
]
Fe complexes subject
to partial biological
oxidation
CN
Fe(CN)
5
3
uv light
Fe(CN)
6
4
dimers,
trimers etc
p
o
l
y
m
e
r
i
s
a
t
i
o
n
F
e
2
+
CN
b
io
lo
g
ic
a
l
oxidation
SCN
HS
N
i
2
+
C
u +
Z
n 2
+
Ni(CN)
4
2
Cu(CN)
2
Zn(CN)
4
2
O
2
HCO
3
+ NH
3
NH
3
+ HCO
3
+ HSO
4
NO
2

+ NO
3
biological
oxidation
b
i
o
l
o
g
i
c
a
l
o
x
i
d
a
t
i
o
n
HCOO
+NH
4
+ TAILINGS POND
approaches background
concentrations
diffusion/dispersion
photolysis/oxidation
HCN(g)
moisture
hydrolysis
biological
oxidation
to soil or
surface water
far below
detection limits
HCOO
+ NH
4
+
HCN/CN
(very dilute)
hydrolysis
biological
oxidation
plant nutrient
animal
metabolism
AIR
NH
3
+ CO
2
HCN
s
u
n
l
i
g
h
t
u
v
Fe
3+
hydrolysis
Prussian Blue
b
io
lo
g
ic
a
l
n
itr
ific
a
tio
n
Source: Smith and Mudder, 1991. Courtesy of Environment Australia
treatment process (pi oneered by Degussa). An ol der chemi cal oxi dati on al ternati ve, the
Al kal i ne Chl ori nati on Process, i s rarel y used i n the mi ni ng i ndustry today.
I n the SO
2
/Ai r process, free and WAD cyani de are oxi di zed, and i ron cyani de i s preci pi -
tated as an i nsol ubl e sol i d. The process can be appl i ed to ei ther sol uti ons or sl urri es, and
reacti on i s rapi d. Potenti al l i mi tati ons are the need to obtai n a l i cence to use the process,
21
22
20
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
1 5 10 15 20 25
1980 April 30 June 4 July 9 August 13 September 12
C
o
n
c
e
n
t
r
a
t
i
o
n

o
f

C
N
T

m
g
/
L
T A B L E 3 . N a tu ra l D egra d a ti o n o f C y a n i d e i n T a i li n gs I m p o u n d m en ts
Sources: a) Scott, 1993; b) Smith et al., 1985; c) Smith, 1987; d) Smith, 1994
F I G U R E 5 . E x a m p le o f C y a n i d e D egra d a ti o n i n a S h a llo w P o n d
Source: adapted from Schmidt et al., 1981.
MINE CN entering CN discharging
the tailings from the tailings
system (mg.L
-1
) system (mg.L
-1
)
Lupi n, NWT, Canada
(a)
184 0.17
Hol t McDermott, Ontari o, Canada
(a)
74.8 0.02
Cannon, Washi ngton, USA
(b)
284 <0.05
Ri dgeway, South Carol i na, USA
(c)
480 0.09
Gol den Cross, New Zeal and
(d)
6.8 (WAD CN) 0.33 (WAD CN)
the cost of bui l di ng a processi ng pl ant, the need for empi ri cal testi ng to opti mi ze the sys-
tem, and the i nabi l i ty of the process to oxi di ze i ntermedi ate by-products of cyani de.
Hydrogen peroxi de, a strong oxi dant, oxi di zes free and WAD cyani de to ammoni um and
carbonate. I ron cyani des are not oxi di zed by peroxi de, but preci pi tate as i nsol ubl e and
stabl e sol i ds. Someti mes i t i s necessary to add chemi cal s to control the copper concen-
trati on of sol uti ons to meet envi ronmental regul ati ons. The peroxi de system i s not as
wel l sui ted to the treatment of sl urri es because of i rregul ar hydrogen peroxi de requi re-
ments when sol i ds are present.
Both methods of chemi cal oxi dati on are capabl e of produci ng resi dual concentrati ons of
cyani de that can meet stri ngent di scharge standards. Both processes requi re testi ng on
representati ve sampl es of si te-speci fi c materi al s pri or to the fi nal pl ant desi gn. Caros
aci d, whi ch combi nes sul phuri c aci d wi th hydrogen peroxi de to form H
2
SO
5
, i s al so used
as an oxi dati on agent to decompose cyani de i n sol uti on.
Precipitation of stabl e cyani des can be achi eved by the del i berate addi ti on of compl ex-
i ng agents such as i ron. Thi s reduces the free cyani de concentrati on and i s al so effecti ve
i n control l i ng el evated l evel s of other metal s that may be present. I ron cyani des may
react wi th other chemi cal s i n sol uti on and produce sol i d preci pi tates, whi ch may contai n
a dozen i nsol ubl e cyani de sal ts, thereby removi ng cyani de from sol uti on. Some of the
cyani de i n process sol uti ons wi l l react wi th other chemi cal components wi thi n the sys-
tem to form much l ess toxi c concentrati ons of compounds such as ammoni a, ni trate and
carbon di oxi de.
Biodegradation of cyani de i s the basi s for i ndustri al wastewater treatment systems such
as those used by Homestake Mi ni ng Company i n the Uni ted States and I CI Bi oproducts
i n the Uni ted Ki ngdom. A bi ol ogi cal process has been used to treat cyani de to meet envi -
ronmental di scharge cri teri a for more than a decade at the Homestake Mi ne i n Lead,
South Dakota. Aerobi c condi ti ons are much more favourabl e to cyani de degradati on than
are anaerobi c condi ti ons, al though anaerobi c organi sms can be effecti ve i n treati ng
cyani de at concentrati ons of up to several mi l l i grams per l i tre. Both acti ve and passi ve
bi ol ogi cal treatment systems have been bui l tthese systems remove cyani de usi ng
ei ther aerobi c or anaerobi c mi cro-organi sms.
At Homestake, the gol d-mi l l barren sol uti on i s channel l ed through reacti on vessel s con-
tai ni ng bacteri a. These use oxygen from ai r to decompose cyani de compounds i nto
ni trates, bi carbonates and sul fates. Thi s mi crobi al process i s capabl e of oxi di zi ng metal
cyani de compl exes, the metal i ons from the WAD cyani de speci es and i ntermedi ate by-
products of cyani de oxi dati on.
22
Advantages of the bi ol ogi cal treatment process are i ts si mpl e desi gn and operati onal
process control , l ow chemi cal costs and capaci ty of treati ng al l forms of cyani de and i ts
by-products. Potenti al l i mi tati ons of bi ol ogi cal treatment systems i ncl ude reduced per-
formance at col d temperatures and at very hi gh cyani de concentrati ons.
Recycling: Whi l e the technol ogi es for cyani de management have centred on cyani de
destructi on i n si ngl e-pass systems, i t i s possi bl e to recover and re-use cyani de, thus mi n-
i mi zi ng the total amount of cyani de used and reduci ng operati onal costs for some mi nes.
Recycl i ng l owers cyani de concentrati ons i n waste sol uti ons and decreases the cost of
cyani de destructi on.
Cyani de recovery and recycl i ng has been used si nce the 1930s, notabl y at Fl i n Fl on
(Mani toba, Canada), Pachuca (Hi dal go, Mexi co) and Gol canda Mi neral s (Tasmani a,
Austral i a). The basi c process i nvol ves three steps: pH control , vol ati l i zati on under hi gh-
l y control l ed condi ti ons, and capture of the cyani de that has been rel eased. Recent engi -
neeri ng advances have made i t a much more attracti ve prospect than was the case
formerl y, and cyani de recovery has been adapted i n the l ast decade to treatment of sl ur-
ri es i n a patented, commerci al process cal l ed Cyani sorb. The process i s bei ng appl i ed at
the Gol den Cross Mi ne (Wai kato, New Zeal and) and at the Del amar Si l ver Mi ne (I daho,
USA). Two addi ti onal Cyani sorb pl ants have recentl y been started up i n Brazi l and
Argenti na.
Research i nto cyani de recovery conti nues, i ncl udi ng the testi ng of a treatment approach
that separates cyani de compl exes from sol uti ons and absorbs them onto pol ystyrene-
resi n beads cal l ed Vi trokel e (the Cyanosave process). Modi fi cati ons of thi s process can
be appl i ed to ei ther sol uti ons or sl urri es, and both cyani de and metal s can be recovered.
The recovered cyani de i s then recycl ed for use i n the gol d pl ant. Whi l e there have been
successful tests of the process at mi nes i n Canada, Austral i a and the USA, no commer-
ci al pl ant yet exi sts, and devel opment conti nues.
23
SECTION 8
Evaluating and Managing Risks
of Cyanide
T
he comprehensi ve approach to treati ng ri sk i s made up of three key acti vi ti es
whi ch occasi onal l y overl ap: ri sk assessment, ri sk management and ri sk commu-
ni cati on. Al l three acti vi ti es wi l l be descri bed i n thi s and the fol l owi ng secti ons,
begi nni ng wi th ri sk assessment.
As stated al ready, i t i s wel l known that sodi um cyani de and some of i ts deri vati ves are
poi sons and that cyani de compounds are cl assi fi ed as hazardous. I ndeed, modern soci -
ety safel y uti l i zes many substances that are potenti al l y hazardous, thanks to the abi l i ty to
assess and manage the associ ated ri sks. Si nce the 1970s, i t has become common practi ce
to eval uate the ri sks associ ated wi th hazardous processes and materi al s through a sys-
temati c ri sk assessment process. Many of the concepts of ri sk assessment arose from
more general methods devel oped by the i nsurance i ndustry. These have thei r theoreti -
cal basi s i n probabi l i ty and mathemati cal stati sti cs. One of the key concepts that has car-
ri ed over i nto envi ronmental ri sk assessment i s the fundamental defi ni ti on of ri sk as the
probabi l i ty of a defi ned consequence.
Risk assessment consi sts of four parts:
1. Hazard identification i s defi ned as the determi nati on of the adverse effects whi ch
chemi cal , physi cal and bi ol ogi cal agents have an i nherent capaci ty or potenti al to cause
to humans and the envi ronment. Physi cal hazards i ncl ude combusti on, expl osi vi ty, fl am-
mabi l i ty and corrosi vi ty. Heal th hazards are categori zed as acute (e.g. ski n and eye i rri -
tati on, l ethal effects, asphyxi ati on) or chroni c (e.g. carci nogeni ci ty, sensi ti zati on, effects
on reproducti ve system, effects on nervous system, effects on organs). Ecol ogi cal haz-
ards i ncl ude mortal i ty (acute) and reduced growth and reproducti on (chroni c) i n repre-
sentati ve speci es.
Hazard i denti fi cati on i s onl y the fi rst step i n ri sk assessment. I t i s not an appropri ate
basi s upon whi ch to make a ri sk management deci si on. However, hazard i denti fi cati on
i s a cri ti cal step commonl y carri ed out before chemi cal s and products are i ntroduced to
the market. I n the case of human heal th and the envi ronment, resul ts of toxi ci ty/ecotox-
i ci ty testi ng and epi demi ol ogy data are used to determi ne hazard.
25
Evaluating and Managing Risks of Cyanide
2. Dose-response evaluation i s the determi nati on of the rel ati onshi p between the mag-
ni tude of an admi ni stered, appl i ed or i nternal dose and a speci fi c bi ol ogi cal response.
The dose i s the total amount of a substance admi ni stered to, i ngested, i nhal ed or
absorbed by an organi sm under standardi zed l aboratory condi ti ons used for toxi col ogy
testi ng. The end poi nts of toxi ci ty (or dose response) can be expressed as the measured
or observed i nci dence, the percent response i n groups of subjects (or popul ati on), or the
probabi l i ty of occurrence of a response i n a popul ati on.
3. Exposure assessment i s the eval uati on of the pathways by whi ch the hazard may con-
tact a sensi ti ve recei ver. The recei ver may be a si ngl e person, a real or hypotheti cal pop-
ul ati on, or a set of ecol ogi cal reci pi ents such as fi sh or wi l dfowl . The exposure
assessment determi nes how and under what ci rcumstances the recei ver may be exposed
to the hazard. I t may al so determi ne the quanti ti es of the hazardous substance and the
l ength of exposure.
4. Risk characterization summari zes the i nformati on from hazard i denti fi cati on, dose-
response eval uati on and exposure assessment i nto an overal l concl usi on on ri sk i n a
form that i s useful to deci si on makers, l egi sl ators, the medi a and members of the publ i c.
Ri sk characteri zati on provi des a quanti tati ve or qual i tati ve descri pti on of the potenti al
hazards of a parti cul ar exposure. Quanti tati ve ri sk characteri zati on conveys a numeri cal
esti mate of the magni tude of the ri sk that a substance poses to humans or to the envi -
ronment. Thi s ri sk may be expressed as i ndi vi dual ri sk or popul ati on ri sk. Qual i tati ve
ri sk characteri zati on descri bes i n narrati ve form the adverse effect or effects associ ated
wi th exposure to an agent and provi des some measure of the evi dence for the
associ ati on.
6
Health and Environmental Impacts of Cyanide
Compl ete ri sk assessments requi re detai l ed speci fi cati ons of the si te-speci fi c condi ti ons.
I n the case of cyani de, i ts use vari es so much that ri sk can be meani ngful l y eval uated
onl y i f the speci fi c operati ng procedures at a parti cul ar si te are consi dered. Neverthel ess,
i t i s possi bl e to descri be the hazards posed by cyani de and the potenti al exposures.
T o x i ci ty a n d E p i d em i o lo gy o f C y a n i d e i n H u m a n s
Cyani de i s a very fast-acti ng poi son that i s capabl e of ki l l i ng a person wi thi n mi nutes i f
he or she i s exposed to a suffi ci entl y hi gh dose. Humans may be exposed to cyani de by
i nhal ati on, i ngesti on or absorpti on through the ski n. Cyani de prevents oxygen from
bei ng used by the cel l s, causi ng ti ssue hypoxi a and cyanosi s (a bl ui sh di scol ourati on of
26
6 From George M. Gray, Jeffery, W. G. and Marchant. G. E., Risk Assessment and Risk Management of Non-
Ferrous Metals: Realizing the Benefits and Managing the Risks, I nternati onal Counci l on Metal s and the
Envi ronment, 1997.
the ski n). The respi ratory system fai l s to nouri sh the cel l s wi th oxygen, a condi ti on
whi ch, i f untreated, causes rapi d, deep breathi ng fol l owed by convul si ons, l oss of con-
sci ousness and suffocati on. The most common anti dote i s amyl ni tri te, whi ch may be
taken oral l y or by i njecti on.
Al though there are many everyday sources of exposure to cyani de (automobi l e exhaust,
tobacco smoke, fi res), cyani de does not accumul ate i n ti ssues because the body trans-
forms such smal l amounts i nto a l ess toxi c compound cal l ed thi ocyanate, whi ch i s
then excreted. Cyani de i s not known to cause cancer or bi rth defects or adversel y affect
reproducti on.
The most toxi c form of cyani de i s HCN gas. The Ameri can Conference of Governmental
I ndustri al Hygi eni sts (ACGI H) l i sts the cei l i ng threshol d l i mi t of HCN at 4.7 ppm.
7
At con-
centrati ons of 20 to 40 ppm of HCN i n ai r, some respi ratory di stress may be observed
after several hours. Death occurs i n mi nutes at HCN concentrati ons above approxi mate-
l y 250 ppm i n ai r.
For free cyani de, the l ethal dosage to humans by i nges-
ti on or i nhal ati on ranges from 50 to 200 mg (1 to 3 mg of
free cyani de per kg body mass). The l ethal dosage for
dermal absorpti on i s consi derabl y hi gher, at about 100
mg per kg of body wei ght.
Wo rk er E x p o su re
Ri sk assessments address not onl y the i mpacts on the general
popul ati on, but al so the i mpacts on those who are most
l i kel y to be exposed to the hazard, such as the workers at a
speci fi c si te. The potenti al for worker contact wi th cyani de at
mi nes occurs duri ng the recei vi ng, unl oadi ng, handl i ng and
storage of sol i d sodi um cyani de bri quettes.
Provi ded that the cyani dati on process i s mai ntai ned at a hi gh
l evel of al kal i ni ty (pH of 10.5 or above), al most al l the free
cyani de i s present as CN
-
i n process sol uti ons. Under such condi -
ti ons, the vol ati l i ty of HCN from sol uti ons i s l ow, so that the ri sk to
workers through i nhal ati on i s manageabl e.
8
27
7 1998 TLVs and BEI sThreshol d Li mi t Val ues for Chemi cal Substances and Physi cal Agents,
publ i shed by the ACGI H.
8 I ngesti on of process sol uti on by workers (al l of whom are trai ned and bri efed on safety i ssues) i s not consi d-
ered a credi bl e exposure pathway, because of the unl i kel i hood of anyone dri nki ng such a sol uti on.
HCN detector used
in modern mining
operations.
Photo courtesy of DuPont
Workers are requi red to wear respi ratory protecti on agai nst potenti al ai rborne hazards.
Trai ni ng i n the fi tti ng, use and testi ng of such equi pment i s i ncorporated i nto the com-
pany heal th and safety procedures. Most modern mi ni ng operati ons have HCN gas detec-
tors or moni tors that sound al arms i n confi ned areas where HCN gas may be present.
Most humans can detect the odour of hydrogen cyani de gas (a bi tter al mond smel l ) at
concentrati ons bel ow those that are hazardous to thei r heal th.
E n v i ro n m en ta l T o x i co lo gy a n d I m p a cts
Hazardous materi al s affect not onl y humans, but al so ecol ogi cal receptors. For mi ni ng
envi ronments, three groups of ecol ogi cal or envi ronmental receptors are of concern:
mammal s, repti l es and amphi bi ans; bi rds (especi al l y mi gratory wi l dfowl ); and fi sh and
other aquati c l i fe.
There are few reports of major adverse i mpacts to ani mal s from cyani de at mi ni ng si tes.
Sodi um cyani de and cyani de-beari ng sol uti ons are handl ed i n restri cted areas of mi ni ng
si tes. Access by ani mal s that wal k or crawl i s l i mi ted by wal l s, concrete pads, berms and
fences, whi l e the presence of humans around the mi ni ng faci l i ti es al so deters ani mal s
from approachi ng. Government eval uati ons i n the USA showed that standard contai n-
ment desi gns and good engi neeri ng control have effecti vel y mi ti gated threats to mam-
mal s, repti l es and amphi bi ans.
9
The pri nci pal concern for wi l dfowl has al ways been exposure to cyani de i n open ponds,
especi al l y for mi gratory wi l dfowl passi ng through rel ati vel y ari d regi ons such as the
western USA, where use of cyani de i n mi ni ng has become qui te common. I t shoul d be
noted, however, that the mortal i ty of bi rds i n Nevada due to exposure to cyani de sol u-
ti ons has been reduced dramati cal l y from about 1,300 i n 1990 to 220 i n 1995, a decrease
of 83%. Thi s i mprovement i s l argel y due to l i mi ti ng the WAD cyani de concentrati on of
uncovered ponds to l ess than 50 ppm. Thi s concentrati on of WAD cyani de i s not acutel y
toxi c to ducks, whi ch are shown to be very sensi ti ve to cyani de as compared wi th other
wi l dfowl and wi l dl i fe.
As a resul t of effecti ve regul ati ons and good management practi ce i n mi ni ng, speci fi c
steps have been taken to further l i mi t cyani de concentrati ons and exposure to wi l dfowl
i n open ponds. Netti ng has been useful i n coveri ng smal l process ponds, but netti ng of
ful l -scal e tai l i ng i mpoundments i s l i mi ted due to the wei ght of the nets, especi al l y wi th
accumul ated snow or i ce i n col d cl i mates, and due to the acci dental trappi ng of wi l dl i fe
i n the nets. However, netti ng i s sti l l practi sed today for coveri ng ponds i n whi ch the
cyani de concentrati ons must be mai ntai ned at ful l strength for metal l urgi cal purposes.
28
9 General Accounti ng Offi ce (GAO), 1991.
Other methods of keepi ng bi rds away from cyani de sol uti ons i n ponds i ncl ude the use of
ai r cannons, noi semakers, pl asti c bal l s or other fl oati ng devi ces i ncreasi ngl y bei ng used
to cover the enti re surface of smal l process ponds. Thi s l ast method al so ai ds i n mi ni -
mi zi ng the l oss of free cyani de due to vol ati l i zati on.
Young, col d-water fi sh such as sal moni ds appear to be one of the aquati c speci es most
sensi ti ve to cyani de. Aquati c i nsects such as stonefl i es, caddi sfl i es, mayfl i es and beetl es
are general l y l ess sensi ti ve to the substance. I t i s the weak aci d di ssoci abl e forms of
cyani de that are consi dered the most toxi col ogi cal l y si gni fi cant. Laboratory and fi el d
studi es have demonstrated that even sensi ti ve aquati c speci es, such as trout, can tol er-
ate l ow l evel s of WAD cyani de. Many di scharge permi ts and regul atory standards are
based upon WAD cyani de. I n addi ti on, si te-speci fi c standards for WAD cyani de have been
promul gated for mi ni ng operati ons i n such juri sdi cti ons as the Uni ted States and New
Zeal and.
29
Floating bird balls cover the surface of a solution containment pond at the Cortez gold
mine, a Placer DomeKennecott joint venture in Nevada, USA.
F
P
h
o
t
o

c
o
u
r
t
e
s
y

o
f

P
l
a
c
e
r

D
o
m
e
SECTION 9
Risk Management for Cyanide
in the Mining Industry
T
here are four major ri sk scenari os that need to be addressed through si te-
speci fi c pl ans:
Exposure of humans or ecol ogi cal receptors to cyani de spi l l ed duri ng a transporta-
ti on acci dent.
Exposure of workers, parti cul arl y to HCN gas i n encl osed areas.
Exposure of humans through rel eases of cyani de i n sol uti on to surface or ground
water that may be i ngested.
Exposure of ecol ogi cal receptors, such as bi rds or fi sh, to cyani de-beari ng sol uti ons.
Transportati on regul ati ons and di l i gent safety programs l i mi t the ri sks associ ated wi th
the fi rst scenari o. As to the second, whi l e adverse i mpacts from rel eases of process sol u-
ti ons have occurred i n the past, sci enti fi c and engi neeri ng procedures exi st to al l ow the
safe and rel i abl e operati on of cyani dati on processes. When si te-speci fi c standards rel at-
i ng to the thi rd and fourth scenari os are set wi thi n the water-qual i ty regul atory frame-
work, protecti on of human heal th and the envi ronment can be effecti vel y real i zed.
Management Systems and Research
and Development
Ri sk management i n al l of i ts aspectsfrom heal th and safety to prudent fi nanci al oper-
ati onsi s understood by todays mi ni ng i ndustry to be an i ntegral part of corporate man-
agement and a cri ti cal factor for the success of an i ndustri al /commerci al enterpri se.
Modern mi ni ng compani es appl y the general i zed concept of management systems to
thei r programs i nvol vi ng cyani de. I ncreasi ngl y, thi s methodol ogy i s seen as part of good
stewardshi p i n mi ni ng, as i n other i ndustri al acti vi ti es. Effecti ve management systems
i nvol ve four formal steps:
1. Plan: Wri tten pl ans are prepared to detai l the proper handl i ng procedures and the
acci dent response wi th respect to cyani de transportati on and recei vi ng, storage, sol uti on
31
Risk Management for Cyanide in the Mining Industry
preparati on, metal l urgi cal processes and waste management. Such pl ans i ncl ude spi l l
and contai nment procedures at mi ni ng operati ons as wel l as heal th and safety proce-
dures for protecti ng empl oyees from the potenti al hazards of cyani de.
2. Execute: For a program to be effecti ve, there must be a commi tment to executi ng the
wri tten pl ans routi nel y and conti nuousl y at every operati on. Addi ti onal l y, each i ndi vi d-
ual empl oyees responsi bi l i ti es for executi ng and documenti ng the acti ons requi red by
the pl ans must be spel l ed out i n detai l and cl earl y defi ned.
3. Review and document: Part of managements responsi bi l i ty i s to audi t performance
on a routi ne basi s. The responsi bi l i ty for revi ewi ng and documenti ng performance i s
typi cal l y gi ven to persons who are not part of the l i ne operati on and who report to a cor-
porate l evel of authori ty. Thi s ensures an i ndependent eval uati on of the performance of
the system. I t al so ensures that the appropri ate l evel of management i n the company i s
i nformed about operati onal performance. The corporate authori ty may then revi ew and
effecti vel y manage the potenti al ri sks by i mpl ementi ng pol i ci es and programs appl i cabl e
to mul ti pl e si tes.
4. Take corrective action, if necessary: Ri sk management programs may have defi -
ci enci es whi ch subsequentl y become evi dent i n the dai l y operati ons and processes.
When these are i denti fi ed i n the revi ew process, pri ori ty must be gi ven to taki ng appro-
pri ate correcti ve acti ons, and the effects of those acti ons must be revi ewed and docu-
mented i n subsequent audi ts.
Product Stewardship
The most i mportant aspect of a wel l -managed system i s the understandi ng that the peo-
pl e i n contact wi th cyani de must take responsi bi l i ty for i ts safe use.
Cyani de producers audi t purchasers and transportati on systems. They al so desi gn spe-
ci al packagi ng for the transport of cyani de. The three pri mary producers of i ndustri al
cyani de, Degussa, Dupont and I CI , have al l commi tted themsel ves to the pri nci pl es
of Responsi bl e Care
.
10
Truck, rai l and barge transporters screen thei r empl oyees,
32
10 Responsi bl e Care
, begun i n 1985 by the Canadi an Chemi cal Producers Associ ati on (CCPA), i s a new ethi c
for the safe and envi ronmental l y sound management of chemi cal s over thei r l i fe cycl e whi ch has spread to
over 40 countri es around the worl d. Under thi s approach, the CEO or most seni or executi ve of every mem-
ber of CCPA and of most chemi cal associ ati ons throughout the worl d must commi t to i mpl ement the gui di ng
pri nci pl es and codes of practi ce of Responsi bl e Care
wi thi n three years of joi ni ng the associ ati on and must

agree to submi t to publ i c veri fi cati on. The expectati ons of members and partners i n Responsi bl e Care
go
beyond the requi red i mpl ementati on of the 151 management practi ces cal l ed for i n three codes of practi ce
to i ncl ude CEO networki ng vi a l eadershi p groups, publ i c i nput through a nati onal advi sory panel , mutual
assi stance through shari ng best practi ces, peer pressure under a conformance process and the publ i c com-
muni cati on of performance i mprovement measurements.
careful l y i nventory packages, and
establ i sh and mai ntai n systems for
l oadi ng and unl oadi ng. The prod-
ucts are handl ed and transported
accordi ng to protocol s set by the
respecti ve i ndustri es and i n com-
pl i ance wi th nati onal and i nterna-
ti onal regul ati ons.
Mi ni ng compani es establ i sh i nven-
tor y contr ol systems, mai ntai n
wor ker tr ai ni ng and i ndustr i al
hygi ene programs, as wel l as bui l d
and mai ntai n process-sol uti on and
waste-management systems that
are speci fi cal l y desi gned to mi ti -
gate and pr event ex posur e to
cyani de. On a pr oj ect-speci fi c
basi s, al l ri sk management compo-
nents of good product stewardshi p
must be i ntegr ated to achi eve
success.
Conservation and
Recycling
Another component of good stew-
ardshi p of cyani de products i s the
gener al concept of waste mi ni -
mi zati on. By reduci ng the amount
of cyani de physi cal l y present at a
mi ni ng si te, the potenti al exposure
pathways are i nevi tabl y reduced,
and therefore, so i s the total ri sk.
Costs as wel l as ri sks are reduced
when the amount of cyani de used
i n an operati on i s kept to the mi ni -
mum l evel needed to achi eve pro-
ducti on goal s. Thi s obj ecti ve
r equi r es appr oaches, such as
val ue engi neer i ng, that hel p to
33
Risk Management for Cyanide in the Mining Industry
An essential aspect of a well-managed
system is that the people in contact with cyanide
must take responsibility for its safe use.
Cyanide producers provide training to ensure safe
transportation and handling of sodium cyanide.
P
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a

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conserve the total amount of cyani de used and consumed i n a mi ni ng process. The
advent of cyani de recycl i ng processes provi des mi ni ng projects wi th al ternati ves for con-
servi ng the total amount of cyani de requi red.
Regulations and Voluntary Programs Addressing
Worker Safety and Public Health
Regul ati ons, i mposed most often by governments, attempt to enforce the management of
ri sks. Exampl es of regul ati ons i n the cyani de l i fe cycl e i ncl ude: (a) establ i shi ng packag-
i ng and transportati on standards; (b) setti ng i ndustri al hygi ene standards for cyani de
concentrati ons i n the ai r and worker safety; and (c) establ i shi ng l i mi tati ons on effl uent
di scharge to surface and ground waters. Governments have used resul ts from research
and devel opment and a publ i c-pol i cy process to establ i sh procedures and standards that
are protecti ve of worker safety, publ i c heal th and the envi ronment.
Some exampl es of regul atory standards for cyani de to protect human heal th and the
envi ronment were gi ven i n Secti on 6. For exampl e, the most toxi c form of cyani de,
hydrogen cyani de gas, i s regul ated by i ndustri al hygi ene standards such as the ACGI H
standards of 4.7 ppm i n ai r.
On a worl dwi de basi s, the total cyani de l i mi t for protecti on of human heal th general l y i s
set near the Uni ted States Envi ronmental Protecti on Agency proposed dri nki ng water
standard of 0.2 mg.L
-1
. Al so, there i s an emergi ng i nternati onal consensus, based on
techni cal data, that WAD cyani de concentrati ons i n open ponds shoul d be mai ntai ned at
concentrati ons of l ess than 50 mg.L
-1
to protect mi gratory bi rds and other waterfowl
agai nst adverse i mpact.
But the management of ri sks and i ts enforcement are not i mposed by governments
al one, nor need they be. Vol untary programs can have the same effect as regul ati ons
wi thout the onus of l egal coerci on. For exampl e, the major producers of cyani de com-
pounds have made i nternal deci si ons to deal onl y wi th end users and transportati on
compani es that have proven records of safe performance. Whi l e the methods used by
each producer may di ffer, al l have the same resul t of usi ng market mechani sms requi r-
i ng speci fi c performance cri teri a to protect the general publ i c from the hazards of
cyani de.
34
SECTION 10
Risk Communication
R
i sk communi cati on i s a key component i n any comprehensi ve program for prop-
er l y addr essi ng r i sks r el ated to cyani de i n the mi ni ng envi r onment.
Communi cati on i s requi red both wi thi n the operati ng pl ant and external l y wi th
the publ i c. I nternal company educati on and trai ni ng of the managers and workers at a
si te i s cri ti cal . Empl oyees at a mi ne or any other i ndustri al faci l i ty are al so members of
the publ i c who l i ve near the si te. They and thei r fami l i es, fri ends and nei ghbours have
many of the same concerns about the safe use of cyani de and about protecti on of the
envi ronment as anyone el se l i vi ng nearby. The proper communi cati on of al l cyani de
i nformati on to the i nternal staff i s therefore the fi rst step i n communi cati ng the nature
and extent of ri sk to the general publ i c.
35
Risk Communication
Placer Domes Sigma Mine, located in Val dOr, Quebec, Canada.
P
h
o
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o

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r
t
e
s
y

o
f

P
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a
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e
r

D
o
m
e
Beyond compl yi ng wi th formal , regul atory requi rements, effecti ve ri sk communi cati on
i nvol ves publ i c i nformati on and parti ci pati on. I n addi ti on to coordi nati ng emergency
pl anni ng programs wi th the proper l ocal authori ti es, i t means gi vi ng access to data about
the types and quanti ti es of cyani de compounds i n the mi nes operati onal processes and
i nventory, as wel l as moni tori ng data. Effecti ve publ i c communi cati on i s al so bi -di rec-
ti onal , encouragi ng publ i c concerns to be voi ced and addressed.
Mi ne management practi ces wi th respect to cyani de shoul d be made publ i c and be
i mpl emented through programs whi ch are expl ai ned to members of the l ocal communi -
ti es by company representati ves who are effecti ve communi cators. Furthermore, posi -
ti ve communi ty rel ati ons programs can provi de substance as wel l as form, and serve to
show the general popul ati on that cyani de and other hazards are bei ng handl ed safel y i n
the communi ty. Today, a growi ng number of mi ni ng compani es around the worl d have
embraced thi s approach, openi ng the l i nes of communi cati on wi th l ocal communi ti es to
the greater benefi t of al l concerned.
36
SECTION 11
Bibliography
ASTM, 1985. Annual Book of Standards. Secti on D2036, Method-C, Weak Aci d
Di ssoci abl e Cyani des, p. 121.
Bal l antyne, B. and T. Marrs, 1987. Clinical and Experimental Toxicology of Cyanides,
Wri ght Publ i shers, Bri stol , Uni ted Ki ngdom.
Bureau of the Census, 1992. The American Almanac for 1992-1993, 112th Ed. Economi cs
and Stati sti cs Admi ni strati on, the Bureau of the Census, the Reference Press Publ i shers,
Austi n, Texas, USA, September.
Cl esceri , L. S., A. E. Greenberg and R. R. Trussel l (Edi tors), 1989. Standard Methods for
the Examination of Water and Wastewater (17th Edition), Part 4500-CN, Secti on I , Weak
and Di ssoci abl e Cyani de, pp. 4-38, APHA-AWWA-WPCF.
Edel man, L. and Wal l i ne, R., 1983. Devel opi ng a Cooperati ve Approach to
Envi ronmental Regul ati on, Natural Resources Lawyer, Vol . XVI , No. 3.
Ei sl er, R., 1991. Cyani de Hazards to Fi sh, Wi l dl i fe and I nvertebrates: A Synopti c
Revi ew. U.S. Fi sh and Wi l dl i fe Servi ce, Biological Reports v. 85 (1.23).
Envi ronment Austral i a, 1998. Cyanide Management, a bookl et i n a seri es on Best
Practi ce Envi ronmental Management i n Mi ni ng, Commonweal th of Austral i a.
General Accounti ng Offi ce (GAO), 1991. Increased Attention Being Given to Cyanide
Operations, a report to the Chai rman of the Subcommi ttee on Mi ni ng and Natural
Resources, June.
Gl ynn, P., 1983. Cyani de Behavi or i n Groundwater Envi ronments, unpubl i shed BSc
Di ssertati on, Groundwater Research I nsti tute, Uni versi ty of Waterl oo, Canada.
Gol d I nsti tute, 1996. Cyani de. I n Gold Issues Briefing Book, Chapter 4, pp. 112.
Gray, G. M., W. G. Jeffery and G. E. Marchant, Risk Assessment and Risk Management of
Non-Ferrous Metals: Realizing the Benefits and Managing the Risks, I nternati onal
Counci l on Metal s and the Envi ronment, 1997.
37
Bibliography
Gri ffi ths, A.W. and G. Vi ckel l , 1989. Treatment of Gold Effluents with H
2
O
2
, Operating
Experience and Costs. Proceedi ngs of 21st Canadi an Mi neral Processi ng Conference,
Ottawa, Ontari o, Canada.
Habashi , F., 1987. One hundred years of cyani dati on. C.I.M. Bulletin, vol . 80, pp.
108114.
T.W. Hi ggs & Associ ates, 1992. Technical Guide for Environmental Management of
Cyanide in Mining. Prepared for Mi ni ng Associ ati on of Bri ti sh Col umbi a, Canada, Jul y.
Ki l born, I nc., 1991. Best Available Pollution Control Technology. Prepared for Ontari o
Mi ni stry of Envi ronment, Metal Mi ni ng Sector, December.
Lehni nger, A., 1970. Biochemistry. Worth Publ i shers, New York, USA.
Logsdon, M. J. and T. I . Mudder, 1995. Geochemi stry of Spent Ore and Water
Treatment I ssues, Proceedings of the Tailings and Mine Waste 1995 Meeting and
Summitville Forum, Ft. Col l i ns, Col orado, USA, January.
Marsden, J. and I . House, 1992. The Chemistry of Gold Extraction. El l i s Howood
Publ i shers, New York, USA.
McNul ty, T., 1989. A Metal l urgi cal Hi story of Gol d. Ameri can Mi ni ng Congress,
Sept. 20th, 1989. San Franci sco, Cal i forni a, USA.
Mining Environmental Management Magazine, 1995. Speci al I ssue on Cyani de. June,
1995.
Mudder, T. I . (Edi tor), 1998. The Cyanide Monograph. Mi ni ng Journal Books, The
Mi ni ng Journal Ltd, London, Uni ted Ki ngdom.
Mudder, T. I . and A. Gol dstone, 1989. The recovery of cyani de from sl urri es. I n
Randol Conference, Gold and Silver Recovery Innovations Phase IV Workshop,
Sacramento, Cal i forni a, USA, November.
Mudder, T. I . and A. C. S. Smi th, 1994. An Envi ronmental Perspecti ve on Cyani de.
Mining World News, vol . 6, no. 9. October.
Queensl and Government, 1990. Guidelines on Prevention of Water Pollution from
Cyanide Use in Gold Ore Processing. Department of Envi ronment and Heri tage,
Department of Resource I ndustri es, Water Resources Commi ssi on, January.
38
Schmi dt, J. W., L. Si movi c and E. Shannon, 1981. Development Studies for Suitable
Technologies for the Removal of Cyanide and Heavy Metals from Gold Milling Effluents.
Proceedi ngs 36th I ndustri al Waste Conference, Purdue Uni versi ty, Lafayette, I ndi ana,
USA, pp. 831849.
Scott, J. S., 1993. Status of Gold Mill Waste Effluent Treatment. Prepared for CANMET.
Scott, J. S. and J. C. I ngl es, 1987. State of the Art Processes for the Treatment of Gold Mill
Effluents. Mi ni ng, Mi neral and Metal l urgi cal Process Di vi si on, I ndustri al Programs
Branch, Envi ronment Canada, Ottawa, Ontari o, Canada, March.
Scott, J. S. and J. C. I ngl es, 1981. Removal of Cyani de from Gol d Mi l l Effl uents,
Canadian Mineral Processors, Thirteenth Annual Meeting, Ottawa, Ontari o, Canada,
January 20-22, pp. 380418.
Si movi c, L. and W. J. Snodgrass, 1989. Tai l i ngs Pond Desi gn for Cyani de Control at
Gol d Mi l l s Usi ng Natural Degradati on. Proceedings of Environment Canadas Gold
Mining Effluent Treatment Seminar, Mi ssi ssauga, Ontari o, Canada, March 22-23, pp.
5781.
Smi th, A. C. S., 1994. The Geochemi stry of Cyani de i n Mi l l Tai l i ngs. I n J. L. Jambor
and D. W. Bl owes (Eds.), The Environmental Geochemistry of Sulfide Mine-Wastes.
Mi neral ogi cal Associ ati on of Canada Short-Course Handbook, Vol ume 22, pp. 293332.
Smi th, A. C. S., 1987. Testi mony to Department of Heal th and Envi ronmental Control ,
South Carol i na, Permi t No. SC 0041378 Appeal Heari ng, Col umbi a, South Carol i na,
USA, December.
Smi th, A. C. S., A. Dehrman and R. Pul l en, 1985. The Effects of Cyani de-Beari ng Gol d
Tai l i ngs Di sposal to Water Qual i ty i n Wi twatersrand, South Afri ca. I n D. Van Zyl (Ed.),
Cyanide and the Environment, Col orado State Uni versi ty, Fort Col l i ns, Col orado, USA,
pp. 221229.
Smi th, A. C. S., D. Moore and J. Cal dwel l , 1985. Predi cti on of Groundwater I mpact of
Tai l i ngs Di sposal . Proceedings of 2
nd
Annual Can/Am Conference on Hydrogeology,
Banff, Al berta, Canada.
Smi th, A. C. S. and T. I . Mudder, 1991. The Chemistry and Treatment of Cyanidation
Wastes, Mi ni ng Journal Books, London, Uni ted Ki ngdom.
Stanl ey, G. G., 1987. The Extractive Metallurgy of Gold in South Africa. South Afri can
I nsti tute of Mi ni ng and Metal l urgy, Monograph M7.
39
Bibliography
The Handbook of Chlorination, 1986. Van Nostrand Rei nhol d, New York, USA.
US EPA, 1985. Basi s for Li sti ng Hazardous Waste, 40 CFR 261, App. VI I , EPA, 1985.
US EPA, 1981. An Exposure and Ri sk Assessment for Cyani de. Offi ce of Water, EPA-
440/4-85-008, Washi ngton, DC, USA, December.
US Fi sh and Wi l dl i fe Servi ce, 1991. Cyani de Hazards to Fi sh, Wi l dl i fe, and
I nvertebrates: A Synopti c Revi ew, Biological Report 85 (1.23), Contaminant Hazard
Reviews Report 223, December.
Ulmans Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry, 1987. Vol ume A8, Fi fth Edi ti on, VCH
Publ i shers, New York, USA.
Uni fi el d Engi neeri ng, I nc., Coeur dAl ene Mi nes Corp., TI MES Ltd., and Coeur Gol d
N.Z. Ltd., 1994. Recovery of Cyani de from Mi l l Tai l i ngs. Proceedings, 100th Annual
Northwest Mining Association Conference, Spokane, Washi ngton, USA.
Western Austral i a, Department of Mi neral s and Energy, 1992. Cyanide Management
Guideline. Mi ni ng Engi neeri ng Di vi si on, Jul y.
Whi tl ock, J. L. and T. I . Mudder, 1986. The Homestake Wastewater Treatment Process:
Bi ol ogi cal Removal of Toxi c Parameters from Cyani dati on Wastewaters and Bi oassay
Effl uent Eval uati on. I n R. W. Lawrence (Ed.) Fundamental and Applied
Biohydrometallurgy, pp. 327339.
40
About the Authors
Mark J . Logsdon, AB, MSc
Mark J. Logsdon i s currentl y Presi dent and Pri nci pal Geochemi st of Geochi mi ca, I nc., a
consul ti ng fi rm l ocated i n Ojai , Cal i forni a, USA. He hol ds an AB Honors i n Geol ogy from
Pri nceton Uni versi ty as wel l as an MS i n Geol ogy from the Uni versi ty of New Mexi co.
Mr. Logsdon speci al i zes i n hydrogeochemi stry and envi ronmental geochemi stry, parti c-
ul arl y rel ated to waste management. I n addi ti on to consul ti ng experi ence, Mr. Logsdons
30-year career has encompassed research and academi c i nstructi on as wel l as govern-
mental experi ence, notabl y wi th the USAs Nucl ear Regul atory Commi ssi on and the New
Mexi co Bureau of Mi nes and Mi neral Resources. Parti cul ar ski l l s and experi ence
i ncl ude desi gni ng and i mpl ementi ng mul ti di sci pl i nar y ear th
sci ence i nvesti gati ons i nvol vi ng waste characteri zati on, geochemi stry and hydrol ogy.
Geochi mi ca projects i ncl ude hydrogeol ogy and hydrogeochemi stry studi es of aci d mi ne
dr ai nage, cyani de hydr ogeochemi str y at mi ni ng si tes and water-qual i ty si te
i nvesti gati ons.
Karen Hagelstein, BS, MS, PhD, CIH
Karen Hagel stei n i s a Partner and Seni or Envi ronment Sci enti st at Ti mes Li mi ted, an
envi ronmental sci ence and engi neeri ng fi rm l ocated i n Bozeman, Montana, USA, spe-
ci al i zi ng i n water and waste-water engi neeri ng, aquati c toxi col ogy and human heal th
eval uati ons. Dr. Hagel stei n i s a Certi fi ed I ndustri al Hygi eni st and recei ved her BS from
the Uni versi ty of South Dakota, her MS i n Physi ol ogy and Bi ophysi cs from the Uni versi ty
of I owa, and her PhD i n Ci vi l and Envi ronmental Engi neeri ng from the Uni versi ty of
I owa. Duri ng her career of over 15 years, Dr. Hagel stei n has hel d posi ti ons as Seni or
Envi ronmental Sci enti st, Envi ronmental Engi neer, and Heal th and Safety Offi cer wi th a
number of consul ti ng fi rms, and al so spent si x years as Associ ate Professor at the South
Dakota School of Mi nes and Technol ogy. Mi ni ng-rel ated projects undertaken at Ti mes
Li mi ted i ncl ude revi ewi ng and summari zi ng human toxi ci ty data and ri sks wi th respect
to envi ronmental hazard exposures, ai r-di spersi on model l i ng for esti mati ng pol l utant
concentrati ons, and summari zi ng bi ol ogi cal and chemi cal water qual i ty moni tori ng
data.
Terry I. Mudder, BS, MS, PhD
Terry I . Mudder i s co-owner of Ti mes Li mi ted. He has a BS and MS i n organi c and ana-
l yti cal chemi stry, and a PhD i n envi ronmental sci ence and engi neeri ng. Dr. Mudder has
20 years experi ence i n the i nvesti gati on of the chemi stry, anal ysi s, fate, aquati c toxi ci ty
and di sposal of cyani de-beari ng wastes. He has served as adjunct professor, thesi s advi -
sor and guest l ecturer at uni versi ti es throughout the worl d. He has worked on over 100
preci ous metal and non-ferrous mi ni ng-rel ated projects on si x conti nents and has wri t-
ten over three dozen techni cal papers. He has gi ven numerous l ectures and been
i nvol ved wi th short courses and workshops on cyani de. He has co-authored several
pamphl ets and books, i ncl udi ng The Chemistry and Treatment of Cyanidation Wastesand
The Cyanide Monograph, both publ i shed by Mi ni ng Journal Books. He has been i nstru-
mental i n the devel opment and appl i cati on of many of the chemi cal , physi cal and bi o-
l ogi cal treatment processes for cyani de and metal s, for whi ch he has recei ved both
nati onal and i nternati onal awards, and obtai ned worl dwi de patents. He has provi ded
techni cal assi stance to the BC Mi ni stry of Envi ronment, Envi ronment Austral i a, the
Peruvi an Envi ronmental Protecti on Servi ce, the US EPA, US State regul atory agenci es,
as wel l as to several i ndustry-based organi zati ons.

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THE MANAG EMENT OF CYANI D E

wi thi n three years of joi ni ng the associ ati on and must

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