Tailings Reduction

Roadmap

September 2022

Tailings Reduction Roadmap i

Acknowledgements
The development of this publication would not have
been possible without the input and support of the
individuals below. ICMM gratefully acknowledges the
following contributions:

Consulting Teams
This report was supported by the work done by two
consulting partners: a team at Hatch led by Jan Kwak
and a team at Innovation Architects, led by Roby
Stancel.

ICMM Team
Veronica Martinez and Diane Tang-Lee led the process,
with input and support from Alice Evans, Dawn Brock,
Hideo Aoyama, and Aidan Davy. Positive2 and Nic
Benton (ICMM) provided creative design support.

Special Thank You

The ICMM Tailings Working Group 1, alongside key
suppliers outlined in Appendix B, were key contributors
to the outcomes of this process and are strategic
partners to drive the ICMM Tailings Reduction Initiative
forward. The group is chaired by David Cochrane
(South32) and includes:

Matthew Cox (Alcoa); Vaughan Chamberlain and

Fernanda Guabiroba (AngloGold Ashanti); Rodrigo
Moya (Antofagasta Minerals); Pule Soaisa (ARM);
Bassam El Husseini (Barrick); Chad LePoudre, Ingrid
Oyarzun and Lourdes Valle (BHP); Erik Ronne and
Seth Mueller (Boliden); Matome Makwela (Chamber
of Mines South Africa); Carl Weatherell (CMIC); Rene
Orellana (Codelco); Jaap Van Nes (Euromines); Richard
Coleman and Steve Koski (Freeport McMoRan); Aaron
Chapple, Dominic Fragomeni, Gerhard Coetzer and Tim
O’Connell (Glencore); Johan Boshoff (Gold Fields); Aline
Nunes and Claudia Salles (IBRAM); Constanza Alzamora
(International Manganese Institute); Koichiro Tsuchiya,
Naoki Matsuda and Masazumi Ito (JX Nippon); Charles
Dumaresq (Mining Association Canada); Mario Velasco
and Wilber Churata (Minera San Cristobal); Stephinah
Mudau (Mineral Council of South Africa); Harry Silva
(Minsur); Frank Roberto (Newmont); Veronika Shime
(National Mining Association – USA); Giuliana Larice
(Norsk Hydro); Phillipe Crochon, Kebbi Hughes and
Thomas Saruchera (Orano); Imran Gillani and Jaidev
Prasad (Rio Tinto); Jacques Erasmus and Ross Copper
(Sibanye Stillwater); Chris Anderson, Gustavo Gonzaga,
Keith Mayhew and Sol Riano (Teck); Marcelo Barboso
and Luis Crevantes (Vale).
Contents

00 Executive Summary  2
01 Introduction  5
1.1 ICMM Tailings Goal  6
1.2 Narrowing the Technology Landscape  6
1.3 Value Chain Approach  9
1.4 Key Challenges for Implementation  10
1.5 The Role of ICMM in Convening and Accelerating Action  11

02 Building the Pathways to Tailings Reduction  12

2.1. From Technologies to Projects  12
2.2 The Roadmap Process  13
2.2.1 The Start-Up Approach  13
2.2.2 Understanding the Need  14
2.3 Identifying the Enabling Factors to Drive Tailings Reduction  15
2.4 Prioritising Technical Projects  16

03 A Call to Action  21
04 Glossary  24
05 Appendix A  25
06 Appendix B  31

Tailings Reduction Roadmap 1

Executive Summary 00

Responsible management of the world's resources

is critical to enabling a sustainable future for us all.
ICMM is committed to strengthening the social and
environmental performance of the mining and metals
industry to deliver the materials essential for
sustainable development in a responsible manner.

ICMM 2
Tailings1 production is inherent to mining and metals
processing and will remain so for the foreseeable future.
But, as the catastrophic tailings dam failures at Mount
Polley (Canada) in 2014, Samarco (Brazil) in 2015 and
Brumadinho (Brazil) in 2019 starkly remind us, there is still
much more that needs to be done to safeguard lives,
improve performance and demonstrate transparency.
In late 2018, ICMM company member CEOs set a
long-term goal on tailings: ICMM members agreed to
work collectively to advance progress over the next
10-15 years towards developing improved and cost-
effective alternatives to conventionally manage tailings
storage facilities that will reduce the risk of
catastrophic failure. What this means in practice, is
around a third of the global metal and mining industry
has committed – at the highest level – to work
collectively to solve one of our industry’s biggest
challenges and ensure we play our part in building a
sustainable future.
This challenge is complex. Declining ore grades of
existing mines, new mines targeting deeper ore bodies
and increased mineralogical complexity, all have the
1. A by-product of mining, consisting of the processed rock or soil left over from the
separation of the commodities of value from the rock or soil within which they occur.
Tailings
Brochure Reduction
Title TextRoadmap
potential to result in increased tailings production. There
is, therefore, an economic trade-off between tailings
production, mineral recovery and incremental operating
costs for a given operation. Broader systemic change is
required to influence the relationship between cut-off
grade, market conditions and tailings production.
We cannot address this challenge alone. As a
membership organisation, we understand that the best
solutions are created when ideas, resources and
experiences are brought together through partnership
and engagement with diverse groups across the mining
sector and beyond. This includes mining companies,
industry associations, academics, investors and
technology providers and suppliers. To this end, ICMM
has advanced work over the past three years,
culminating in the production of this roadmap.
This roadmap provides strategic direction to our
members and wider industry on how to accelerate the
development and adoption of technologies to reduce
tailings production. It includes initiatives that span over
a 10–15-year timeline, identifying quick wins, medium-
term results, and long-term visions.
Executive Summary 3
The process began in 2019 with a landscape review of
technologies that have the potential to reduce tailings.
From this assessment, in 2020, the most promising
solution areas were selected based on their fast-scaling
potential, namely, continuous sorting, batch sensing
and continuous mining machines. Fast scaling potential
was a key selection criterion, as to build momentum for
widespread industry adoption of technologies, real
progress must be demonstrated. In 2021, ICMM
focussed on convening key industry stakeholders to
discuss the barriers to widespread adoption of these
technologies and to identify enabling factors that can
transform a feasible technology into a viable business
model for mining companies to integrate into their
operations. It is only through progressing both
technological and enabling factors in parallel that
progress can be made towards industry-wide adoption
of new technologies, which will contribute towards
achieving the goal.
This roadmap includes a range of technical projects
with tailings reduction potential of varying degrees.
Each of these projects will be subjected to a detailed
financial, risk versus reward, and ESG analysis to build a
robust business case. Projects with high Technology
Readiness Levels (TRLs) can be scaled quickly, making
them the first candidates for implementation with a
strong business case, even though their direct tailings
reduction potential may be limited. From there, other
projects identified have a stronger tailings reduction
potential, but these are based on more transformative
mining processes, mine designs or technologies. These
can be progressed once more attention to, and
confidence in, tailings reduction technologies is built
with the results from the early projects. The most
disruptive technologies or zero waste architectures
serve as a vision to work on in feasible and viable steps.
ICMM
By convening ICMM members and key suppliers to
develop an industry roadmap, a collaboration was
commenced that creates an understanding and
commercial basis for partnerships and cost sharing, a
comprehensive knowledge sharing base, as well as a
tailings composition database including standardisation
of measurement, reporting, tracking and valorisation
potential. It is important to note that this process has
already resulted in the initiation of partnerships and pilot
testing of technologies at the site level.
ICMM hopes that this roadmap and the publication of
progress on the various initiatives can be used as a
basis to generate interest in and promote future
collaborative initiatives for the mining industry and
beyond. We recognise that we have a long road ahead
of us but believe this is an important first step in
progressing the industry wide adoption of tailings
reduction technologies. But we cannot do it alone. We
need to work collaboratively to accelerate the pace of
current innovation as well as breakthroughs that can be
adopted widely in existing and future operations around
the world. This is why ICMM is launching the Tailings
Innovation Initiative, which will bring together a third of
the global mining and metals industry with technology
innovators such as suppliers and academia to accelerate
ways to reduce tailings waste and explore the potential
to eliminate it in the long-term.
ICMM members are already piloting technologies from
the Roadmap that match their commodities and site
characteristics, and we hope that its publication will
serve as a catalyst for advancing more partnerships
between industry and technology innovators on piloting
these technologies as visible ‘first movers’. We look
forward to sharing the progress of this initiative as
lessons are learnt and pilot testing progresses.
Executive Summary 4
Introduction 01
As the global population increases, so does our
demand for metals and minerals that provide the
raw materials for modern life.
The drive to produce the clean energy technologies bodies and increased mineralogical complexity, all of
that are required to achieve global climate goals will which have the potential to lead to increased tailings
also significantly increase demand for critical minerals. production.
But these materials must be responsibly sourced and
Tailings production is inversely proportional to cut-
produced. The International Energy Agency (IEA) has
off grade for mined material. In other words, tailings
estimated that, by 2040, there could be a 20-fold
production is higher in ore bodies where lower grades
increase in demand for nickel and cobalt, as well as
are mined. There is, therefore, an economic trade-off
a 6-fold increase in demand for copper to meet the
between tailings production, mineral recovery and
needs of an increasingly electrified world.
incremental operating costs for a given operation.
With increased demand and supply of metals and Broader systemic change is required to influence the
minerals comes the challenge of extracting greater relationship between cut-off grade, market conditions
value from low grade deposits, mining deeper ore and tailings production.

Figure 1: Estimate of Global Annual Tailings Production by Commodity (Hatch, 2019) 2

10,000
9,000
8,000
(million metric tonnes)

7,000
Tailings Production

6,000
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
0
2010 2012 2014 2016 2018
Alumina 113 128 144 150 163
Nickel 157 220 243 207 228
Iron Ore 687 820 934 1164 1374
Coal 1717 1864 1937 1761 1813
Gold 1656 2355 2205 2302 2351
Copper 2371 2570 2926 3338 3440

2. Currently there is no exact way to know how much tailings are being produced year on
year across the globe. This estimate assumes no adjustment to cut-off grade and no
change in overall production levels.

Tailings Reduction Roadmap 5

The production of some metals generates more
tailings than others, with factors such as the type,
quality, quantity and production rate of mineral
deposits determining the amount of tailings a specific
mine produces. Estimates for global annual tailings
production are illustrated in Figure 1 for alumina, copper,
coal, gold, nickel, and iron ore. The combined tailings
production rate has increased by 40% since the start
of the decade with most of the tailings generation from
copper and gold processing. Both commodities operate
with some of the mining industry’s lowest ore grades,
which will continue to decline into the future.
This global trend of increasing tailings production
means tailings facilities are becoming larger and more
complex. Management methods and technological
practices must therefore continue to evolve to address
the risks associated with tailings storage in this
paradigm. Failure to understand and mitigate these
risks can be costly, and may have severe environmental,
social and financial consequences. There is therefore
measurable value for the industry to meet society’s
demands for extracting materials in a safe and
sustainable manner. To guide the mining companies
through this challenge, ICMM is focused on improving
the environmental and social performance of the mining
and metals industry, and demonstrate that the industry
can be trusted to operate responsibly.
The Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management
(the Standard) published in 2020, established the first
global standard on tailings management that can be
applied to existing and future tailings facilities, wherever
they are and whoever operates them. The Standard
was developed through the Global Tailings Review,
which was co-convened in March 2019 by the United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Principles
for Responsible Investment (PRI) and ICMM following
the tragic tailings facility collapse at Brumadinho,
Brazil, on 25 January 2019, which killed 270 people.
ICMM members have committed to implementing
all requirements of the Standard by August 2023 for
‘Extreme’ and ‘Very High’ consequence tailings facilities,
and by August 2025 for all other facilities.
The Standard provides a framework that improves
transparency, accountability and performance around
the responsible management of tailings facilities and
its implementation has become an ICMM membership
requirement. Nonetheless, many stakeholders, including
investors and community advocacy organisations,
ICMM
are questioning the sustainability of a model where
increased production of tailings is regarded as
inevitable, and demanding a focus on tailings reduction.
Alongside our work on managing tailings safely, ICMM
members have committed to a long-term goal of
significantly reducing tailings (Section 1.1), but post-
Brumadinho, our public promotion of this work has been
muted. This roadmap provides strategic direction to our
members and wider industry on how to accelerate the
development and adoption of technologies to reduce
tailings production.
1.1 ICMM Tailings Goal
In November 2018, ICMM members’ CEOs set a goal of
tailings reduction, committing to work “collectively to
advance progress over the next 10-15 years towards
developing improved and cost-effective alternatives to
conventionally managed tailings storage facilities that
will reduce the risk of catastrophic failure”.
This goal requires long-term commitment to
the development of technologically feasible and
economically viable solutions for large scale mining
projects. Due to this being a global challenge applicable
to all orebodies and mining methods, there is no
‘one-size-fits-all’ solution. To assist in building the
necessary momentum for this initiative, ICMM has been
working over the past three years with our members,
original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), technology
integrators3 and industry experts towards this goal,
evaluating known and identifying new technologies to
reduce and potentially eliminate tailings.
This roadmap considers both the applicability of
technology solutions as well as the enabling factors that
transforms a feasible technology into a viable business
model for mining companies to integrate into their
operations. It is only through progressing these aspects
in parallel that real progress can be made towards
industry-wide adoption of new technologies, which will
contribute to progress towards achieving the goal.
1.2 Narrowing the Technology Landscape
In 2019, ICMM undertook a landscape review of
available, emerging and prospective methods and
technologies (see Appendix A for the longlist of
identified technologies). Based on engagement with
stakeholders from a range of organisations within
academia, industry, consultancy and other specialists,
the identified technologies were grouped into five
3. Suppliers that develop systems to support mining companies with the implementation of
specific technologies or solutions at a mine site level.
Introduction 6
topic areas, which are aligned with the stages of a
conventional mining value chain and are summarised as:
— Precision geology: geological techniques,
processes or models that have the ability to
better characterise the ore body for downstream
processing, maximising ore and minimising waste
rock being mined which will have an impact on
tailings generated.
— Precision mining: mining approaches or
technologies that minimise or eliminate waste rock
being mined which will have an impact on tailings
generated.
— Precision segregation: segregation and liberation
technologies that can optimise mineral recovery or
produce more benign tailings.
— In-situ and ex-situ recovery: leaching techniques
that can optimise mineral recovery and minimise
and/or eliminate the volume of waste rock
produced which will have an impact on tailings
generated.
— Tailings enhancement and valorisation: different
ways to create value from tailings, or ways to
minimise the requirement for tailings storage.
These aspects are consistent with the underlying
principles of the Waste Risk Management Hierarchy
depicted in Figure 2. This hierarchy shows that the
further upstream that waste can be eliminated, and the
metal-bearing materials concentrated, the higher impact
there will be on final waste and tailings reduction.
Within each aspect, a shortlist of technology themes
found to have the most significant impact on tailings
Figure 2: Waste Management Hierarchy
Most
preferred
Prevention
Reduction
Recycling
Recovery
Storage
Least
preferred
Tailings Reduction Roadmap
reduction and/or elimination were identified. The
purpose was to guide ICMM members on the type of
technologies that are currently available, but at that
stage no assessment was made of the applicability to
commodity, mining method or mine location. In terms of
technology themes that can have the greatest impact
on tailings reduction, the shortlist consisted of:
— Advanced geometallurgy: Techniques that will
not directly reduce tailings production but provide
a more comprehensive understanding of the ore
body and the location and type of waste rock.
— Advanced sensing and particle sorting: Particle
separators utilise a sensor measurement to identify
which metal-bearing rock fragments are to be
recovered/rejected.
— Bulk ore sorting: Unlike particle-based sorting,
this involves applying a penetrative sensor to large
volumes of ore (e.g. on a conveyor system) to
separate barren material and divert it from being
processed.
— In-situ extraction: Process of extracting target
minerals from within an ore body using a chemically
conditioned leaching solution.
— Preferential fracturing: techniques which enable
more targeted and controlled fracturing at mineral
grain boundaries, as opposed to random breakage
The results of the landscape assessment found that
while technologies do exist that can reduce tailings
production and increase tailings enhancement (e.g. the
use of tailings in construction materials etc), there is no
single solution that can be applied at scale. This is due
to the complexities in tailings composition, integration
into existing processes and site-specific characteristics,
which means tailings operators will need to conduct
site by site assessments in order to determine the most
suitable waste reduction, valorisation or enhancement
avenue for their tailings. It also points to a broader issue
of industry relying on point source solutions rather
than a holistic and integrated approach to disrupt
entrenched technologies and processes.
In 2020, ICMM sought to understand the key challenges
to implementation and the value proposition for each
technology theme, as well as build industry-wide
support for collaboration by identifying and engaging
with key global technology suppliers with a focus on
innovation. An in-depth assessment of the technologies
within each key theme was undertaken across six
commodities to understand how tailings production
could be impacted by applying the technology.
Introduction 7
 8
Figure 3: Technology Development Status and Potential Tailings Reduction Impact (Hatch, 2019)
Technology Development Status and Impact
Theme A: Advanced Geometallurgy Theme B and C: Ore Sorting Theme D: In-Situ Mining Theme E: Preferential Fracturing
Spectral Quantitative Data Continuous Batch Advance Well to Well Percolate ISR Fragmentation Continuous
Commodity Imaging Minerology Analytics Sorting Sensing Particle ISR for (Underground Mining
(bulkore) Sorting 3 Hard Rock4 ISR Reactors) Machines
Copper
Gold
Iron Ore

Introduction
Nickel
Coal
Bauxite
Timeframe Potential gain with further development (to reach TRL 9) 1 Potential Tailings Reduction (TRL 9) 2
Short Term TRL >6 (3-5 years) Low <1% (Currently High TRL, implement NOW) <1%
Medium Term TRL Between 3-6 Medium Between 1%-5% (Good improvement possible with 1% to 5%
(5-10 years) robust technology commercialization WOW!) 5% to 10%
Long Term TRL <3 (more than 10 High >5% (High impact with further technology development 10% to 15%
years) HOW?)
>15%
Note 1: Potential gain calculated as the differential between technology reduction now and the potential reduction with TRL 9
Note 2: Potential reduction of a technology is assessed for the commodity as a whole and not for a particular ore body
Note 3: The viability of advance particle sorting relies on the development of effective sensors
Note 4: High TRL for Well to Well ISR in Gold due to reports at some Russian mines (method for environmental management of lixiviant unclear)
Copyright © Hatch 2020. All Rights Reserved.

ICMM
The results of the analysis are illustrated in Figure 3
and show that the highest potential impact on tailings
reduction for base and precious metals are bulk ore
sorting; advanced particle sorting; fragmentation; and
In Situ Recovery (ISR) technologies for copper and gold.
In relation to bulk materials, such as coal and bauxite,
bulk ore sorting, and continuous mining machines
technologies present potentially highest impact on
tailings reduction.
1.3 Value Chain Approach
The tailings reduction challenge is a complex effort that
is best solved utilising the innovative capacity of the
entire mining supply chain. A broad review of the supply
chain to identify more than 100 innovation-focussed
stakeholders that are currently working on or may have
interest in advancing the technologies showed that
stakeholders range from research groups and industry
groups to Mining Equipment, Technology and Services
(METS) companies and operators (Figure 4).
Around 50% of the stakeholders identified were
classified as METS companies, whose core business
involves the supply of equipment and/or services
related to the technology themes, indicating that
many of the technologies in question are already on
a commercialisation pathway. The composition of
stakeholder types under each theme reveals the level of
effort required to advance these technologies.
These stakeholders, in particular those with solutions
with advanced Technology Readiness Levels (TRL),
need to be engaged in the tailings reduction challenge.
For this to happen, the industry must align and
collaborate to tackle the economic and technical

Figure 4: Composition of Stakeholder Types by Technology Theme

35

30

25
Number of Stakeholders

20

15

10

0
Theme A: Theme B: Theme C: Theme D: Theme E: Theme F:
Advanced Ore Sorting Advanced In-situ Mining Preferential Preferential
Geometallurgy Sensing and Fracturing Fracturing
Particle Sorting (Fragmentation) (Continuous
Mining
Machines)

Collaborative Research Group METS/Services Operators

Independent Research Group Other/Outside Industry

METS/Equipment Partnership

Tailings Reduction Roadmap Introduction 9

barriers to the commercialisation of tailings reduction
technologies and on the key drivers needed to make
progress.
To entice interest from stakeholders outside of the
mining sector, the challenge should be framed as
business development opportunities, allowing room for
fresh concepts (ie completely different and high-risk
approaches to mineral extraction), but potentially with
high reward as it could be seen as ‘transformational’ for
the mining and metals industry.
1.4 Key Challenges for Implementation
Articulating the business case for tailings reduction
is critical for gaining traction across all stakeholders,
since it will be a big driver for catalysing both mining
companies and suppliers into advancing these
technologies. Mitigating sustainability issues (such
as legacy impacts, water or energy use) in the
management of tailings is essential to validate the
business case for mining.
A delineation between economic, organisational, and
technical drivers (and barriers) to the commercialisation
of tailings reduction technologies is needed to overcome
the structural factors that inhibit development of
tailings reduction technologies. In most situations the
business case for application of tailings technology will
be broader than tailings reduction alone. A summary of
the key challenges or barriers to implementation tailings
reduction technologies are shown in Table 1.

Table 1: Key Challenges or Barriers to Implementation of Tailings Reduction Technologies

Aspect Challenge

Environmental Tailings reduction technologies could result in higher energy and water demands than traditional
and Social processing technologies. Trade off studies will need to be undertaken to understand the
technical, environmental, social and economic factors of alternative technologies.

Geological Different ore bodies require different processing requirements, ultimately influencing the
composition and quantity of tailings produced. Variations in tailings even within the same
commodity makes upscaling technology challenging or impractical for companies with complex
portfolios or operating in diverse geographic locations.

Technological Although a wide range of technologies exist that in theory can reduce the amount of tailings
produced, the application of these technologies at scale has stumbled. We are at an impasse
where suppliers require pilot test sites to demonstrate the viability of their technology but mine
operators are not willing to risk the deployment of new, untested technologies.

Regulatory/Political Companies already have permits and legal obligations in place for the method and quantity of
tailings produced. It may be difficult to obtain permits for new tailings reduction technologies or
for products that are produced from tailings waste for existing operations in certain jurisdictions.
Internal politics is also a challenge from a company perspective. Change in any organisation is
difficult to motivate and sustain. Radical transformative technologies require systemic change
across many company departments and will require buy-in from the highest levels.

Sustainability Pressure to transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources requires a host of different
mineral and metals to be mined in unprecedented quantities. External pressure to responsibly
mine the minerals required for this transition includes identifying new ways to reduce waste at the
earliest possible stage.

Cost The business case to motivate companies to change their tailings production process is lacking.
Investing in a technology does not automatically result in increased profitability as a result of less
tailings being produced. The cost to business needs to be assessed over the entire life cycle and
include the long-term cost to safely close tailings facilities.

ICMM Introduction 10
1.5 The Role of ICMM in Convening and Accelerating
Action
ICMM believes that through concerted industry effort of
developing and integrating the identified technologies
into future projects or expansions (10-20 years), the
challenges can be overcome to significantly reduce
tailings generation relative to the amount of ore mined,
without affecting the level of metals and minerals
production. ICMM can play an instrumental role in
creating visibility on the status of tailings reduction
technologies and in facilitating industry change by
encouraging collaboration and having a stakeholder
engagement approach tailored to each theme.
To make progress towards ICMM’s goal by helping to
accelerate the development and adoption of prioritised
technologies, an industry level roadmap was created
between ICMM members and key innovation-focussed
stakeholders in the mining value chain. The roadmap
approach was chosen to generate social capital, build
Tailings Reduction Roadmap
trust amongst all participants involved and to convey
a shared voice and message to both the stakeholders
involved and more broadly to other interested parties.
It is important to note that this roadmap process has
already resulted in the initiation of partnerships and pilot
testing of technologies at the site level. ICMM hopes
that this roadmap and the publication of progress
on the various initiatives can be used as a basis to
generate interest in, and promote future collaborative
initiatives for, the mining industry and beyond.
The ICMM Tailings Reduction Roadmap includes
initiatives that span over a 10–15-year timeline,
identifying quick wins, medium-term results, and
long-term visions. Through this roadmap, ICMM aims
to promote collaboration across its members and
beyond, enabling progress and success of the
identified initiatives, and communicating lessons
learned along the way. 
Introduction 11
Building the Pathways 02
to Tailings Reduction

2.1. From Technologies to Projects identification, assessing the technology landscape,

The ICMM Tailings Reduction Roadmap built on
previous work by ICMM throughout 2019-2020,
considering stakeholder views, technology landscape
review results and the challenges identified by ICMM
members. In making the goal a reality, several stages of
work were considered in the process, including problem
and identifying the most relevant stakeholders to be
involved, from a technology perspective. ICMM's focus
in 2021 was on the creation of a roadmap with input
provided from ICMM members, suppliers, technology
integrators, and industry experts via a series of virtual
workshops held over the course of the year (Figure 5).

Figure 5: ICMM’s A pproach to Tailings Reduction

Problem outline and scoping

Goal 2018-2020

Technology landscape and stakeholder prioritisation

ICMM Tailings Reduction Roadmap 2022

Project Implementation by ICMM members, suppliers and wider industry 2022 and beyond

ICMM 12
The full list of stakeholders that participated in the component, identifying which technologies could help
roadmap process can be found in Appendix B. reduce the production of tailings. Thus, the roadmap
process was focused on the other components,
2.2 The Roadmap Process as enablers for the overall success of any tailings
2.2.1 The Start-Up Approach reduction initiative. Given that customers’ needs should
The complexity of industry-wide tailings reduction was drive technology solutions, and not the other way
unveiled in the early stages of the roadmap process around, particular attention was paid to collecting and
with numerous challenges identified (see Section 1.4). understanding ICMM members’ and suppliers’ needs,
barriers, and aspirations.
To tackle this complexity, a new approach was required.
The analogy of a ‘start-up’ was introduced to tangibly
describe actions that should be taken to reach the
goal. By definition, a start-up is a company or project
undertaken by an entrepreneur to seek, develop, and
validate a scalable business model. Just like a start-
up needs to address many factors to survive in the
market, a tailings reduction technology venture (or any
new technology) needs to address the same factors
to successfully drive a project within an established
and operating company, with the skills and resources
required by a start-up also being translated to internal
company needs.

The components required to make a complex project

successful are summarized in the Desirability, Viability
and Feasibility framework (Figure 6). ICMM’s earlier
work has already made headway with the feasibility

Figure 6: Desirability – Viability – Feasibility Simplified Approach

Does the solution solve a real need

and are there incentives to address it?

Desirability

Is a solution Is a solution
financially sustainable? Viability Feasibility technically sound?

Tailings Reduction Roadmap Building the Pathways to Tailings Reduction 13

 Figure 7: High-Level Corporate Challenges that Might Constrain Tailings Reduction Initiatives

Desirability Viability Feasibility

• No pressure to change • High cost of solutions’ • Technical complexity

current way of operation implementation of scaling up
• Tailings reduction not • Difficulty to build a technology
seen as a priority across business case for
all business areas tailings reduction
• Lack of motivation to • Lack of suitable
drive change funding

2.2.2 Understanding the Need As a first step to understand and narrow the needs
To build a cohesive implementation environment for any of mining companies, the Desirability – Viability –
initiative aimed at reducing tailings in the mining sector, Feasibility framework was used to identify high-level
three facilitating elements are required: corporate challenges that might inhibit successful
innovation to reduce tailings (Figure 7).
— 
Ensure technologies identified can have an impact
on tailings reduction, addressing their technical In addition, through a collaborative process between
needs. suppliers and ICMM members, specific barriers and
motivations to enable change across the mining value
— 
Build engagement and secure ICMM members
chain were identified that can impact the pace of
input and buy-in for the technology themes
progress towards tailings reduction, as listed in Table
chosen.
2. These barriers and motivations can be seen as the
— 
Identify the enabling factors that need to be reasons to collaborate to solve these challenges.
addressed to ensure successful progress towards
implementation of these technologies

ICMM Building the Pathways to Tailings Reduction 14

Table 2: Barriers and Motivations to Enable Change Across the Mining Value Chain

Factor Mining Companies Suppliers

Lack of drive No clear vision of tailings Lack of willingness from mining

reduction, thus is not current companies to collaborate
burning platform

Long returns timeframe Conventional development cycle Uncertain Return on Investment

of mining projects is over 10 years. (ROI)
Barriers

Challenge towards Challenge to translate R&D into No room to pilot new

commercialisation commercial products and lack of technologies as only proven
understanding of the potential of technologies are accepted
new technologies

Lack of collaboration and Intellectual property challenges Inadequate timeframes and

resource pools prevent collaboration funding

Alignment with long-term industry To improve circularity and To reduce risk of development
trend sustainability of mining process and deployment
Motivations

ESG value and investor To demonstrate the ESG value of To improve investor confidence in
confidence tailings reduction strengthening the performance of
the industry.

Peer pressure / motivation To carry shared responsibility of To gain competitive advantage

change

Tailings Reduction Roadmap Building the Pathways to Tailings Reduction 15

2.3 Identifying the Enabling Factors to Drive Tailings
Reduction
A network of social process steps, as opposed to
technological steps, are typically required to mobilise
support for technical initiatives within an organisation.
These steps serve the purpose of overcoming barriers,
channelling stakeholders’ motivation and enabling
support to implement tailings-focused technological
initiatives. Through a collaborative process, five social
process steps, termed ‘enabling factors’, were
identified as the key components to building the
ecosystem that ultimately supports the implementation
of any technology to reduce tailings production. These
factors are outlined in the Table 3.
The relationship between these enabling factors and
their interconnections, as portrayed in Figure 8, creates
an enabling environment that drives and accelerates
change within an organisation and in the broader
industry. Key barriers, such as lack of collaboration and
budget allocations can be addressed through these
steps. This may involve: 1) obtaining CEO buy-in and
commitment to execute initiatives, 2) creating a vision,
3) enabling partnerships, 4) through clear messaging
and 5) a validated business case that will ultimately
assist in reaching ICMM’s tailings goal.
For successful implementation, all five factors (CEO
commitment, a vision, a partnering ecosystem,
clear messaging and business cases) need to be in
place simultaneously, and as progress is made, their
outcomes will inform others iteratively, strengthening
each initiative and moving the industry towards the
goal. For example, shaping strong business cases will
enable companies to identify quick wins and build
value estimation, which will support the realisation
of the vision, and motivate partnering and funding
to accelerate the implementation of more initiatives.
This will in turn further strengthen CEO commitment,
encouraging broader participation and uptake.

Table 3: Enabling Factors to Accelerate Tailings Reduction Initiatives

Enabling Factor What Needs to be Achieved

CEO leadership to build a clear pathway to To provide high level guidance and champion ICMM’s tailings goal. This
reach ICMM’s tailings goal will involve promoting it to internal and external stakeholders and seeking
broader support on specific activities required to ensure the success of
the Tailings Reduction Roadmap implementation.

Building a vision and plan for tailings reduction To assess, prioritise and sequence a spectrum of projects by their
ability to reduce tailings, considering their reduction potential and
commercialisation aspects, including implementation cost, applicability
and scalability.

Business partnering and ecosystem to enable To establish a framework and guiding principles for open network
partnerships and create shared value collaboration between mining companies, suppliers, technology
integrators and other stakeholders. To foster trust, accountability and
create shared value for all participants involved.

Establishing a narrative for broader audiences to To create clear messaging that can support mining companies,
understand the challenge suppliers, and other stakeholders to signal their commitment to tailings
reduction to broader audiences, including investors, innovators, host
communities as well as stakeholders in their own companies.

Building business cases for new technologies For any specific solution, to model, visualise, and estimate the project
and solutions benefits in monetary terms, its impact on tailings reduction and other
ESG goals. Develop methodologies to quantify short-term financial as
well as long-term intangible benefits.

ICMM Building the Pathways to Tailings Reduction 16

 Figure 8: ICMM Tailings Reduction Roadmap – Enabling Projects and their Interactions

Public & peer

pressure CEO
Leadership

Value Budget
Calculation Allocation

Pick Business
quick Vision & Plan Project definition
Cases
wins

Cost
Budget Summary
Proposal

Implementation,
Ecosystem/ demonstrated
Visibility Narrative Cost & Risk Partnering/ solution
Sharing Funding
Key:
Dependencies
Outcomes

2.4 Prioritising Technical Projects
The prioritised technical solutions that are the basis
for projects are outlined in Table 4. It considers
technologies that are in an advanced stage of
development that can have a significant impact
towards reducing tailings. However, there remains
implementation challenges linked to the level of change
required, depending on their impact at different stages
of the mining value chain. These projects are classified
into three main groups, depending on their impact
on tailings reduction and the cultural transformation
required, which may be incremental, transformative,
and disruptive. The incremental projects may result in
up to a 30% reduction in tailings whereas the disruptive
projects may result in almost a 100% reduction in
tailings. As the scale of change increases, so does the
complexity of implementation.
These projects were selected by ICMM members and
suppliers based on the feasibility of their individual and
combined efforts in reaching the goal. Figure 9 shows
how these technical projects are distributed along the
mining value chain, more specifically, where tailings
are produced and their potential impact on tailings
reduction overall. For example, incremental projects
may not reduce tailings production significantly but are
easier to implement.
On the other hand, substantial change and thus
impact of tailings is possible with transformative
technologies, and with disruptive technologies a 100%
tailings reduction may only be theoretically attainable
at this stage.

Tailings Reduction Roadmap Building the Pathways to Tailings Reduction 17

Table 4: Prioritised Technical Solutions by Project and Scale of Tailings Reduction Impact

Type of Project Project Objective

Incremental Ore sorting To enable and set up the capability to rapidly test and evaluate high volume
projects <30% (sensor and bulk) particle sorting, combining sensor-based bulk and particle sorting technologies.
reduction This includes the associated sensing and analysis principles for any
permutation of technologies, suppliers and ore samples, to further enable rapid
implementation with reduced technological and economic risk.

Tailings data To establish, maintain and grow a digital platform for sharing tailings information,
platform data and knowledge enabling the creation of industry-level solutions. This
project aims to democratise access to tailings knowledge by technology
companies to streamline innovation and create new marketplaces for tailings
sourced materials while mitigating environmental impact.

Coarse flotation To enable high volume sorting not by sensors and analysis, but by utilizing
physical properties of the particles. This project is not active yet and needs a
novel technology with a specific application case (commodity, site) as well as an
owner.

Waste valorisation To identify commercial and practical options for valorising tailings, potentially
jointly with the database project; to ensure scientific rigour in data collection, and
opportunity identification by building a toolbox of technologies and approaches
to do so.

Transformative Non-chemical To explore the options to extract ore with non-chemical processes, e.g.
projects – 30 to extraction electrolysis, synthetic, biology or thermal treatments leaving more benign
60% reduction tailings, dry tailings, or no tailings.

No waste mine To create a novel mining method and mine design that eliminates waste due
architecture to open pit design, development, or overcutting. This project aims to develop a
concept modelling module based on parameters from pilot tests.

Mechanical To test continuous mechanical cutting with added enabling technologies as a

cutting foundation for tailings reduction by selective mining, consistent particle sizing,
sorting and liberation at the machine. This project will track several mechanical
cutting trials around the world, transforming the production mining cycle to
upgrade ore, remove waste near or at the source, to explore alternatives to mine
designs and mill process flow sheets.

Disruptive Smart To expand the existing and proven full-scale electro-hydrofracturing batch
projects >90% comminution process into a continuous stream plant for comminution of ore, preferentially
reduction breaking the ore at the grain boundaries, creating more consistent particle size,
allowing for coarser grinding for extraction, and replacing all tailings producing
processes.

In-situ leaching To identify feasible and viable stepping stones to a future in-situ leaching
application, including viable business cases and remaining technical challenges.

ICMM Building the Pathways to Tailings Reduction 18

 Figure 9: The Technological Projects Selected to Reach the Goal,
Mapped Along the Mining Process Value Chain, From Exploration to Refining

Disruptive 3/3

In-situ leaching – metal on tap subprojects

Smart comminution (selective breakage, enhanced liberation

Transformative 2/3

No waste mine architecture Non-chemical extraction & dry processing

Mechanical cutting

Coarse flotation Waste valorisation

Incremental 1/3

Sensor based ore sorting (digital analysis based) Tailings database

Explore

Design & Plan

Develop

Sense & Select

Drill

Pre-Condition

Support

Bulk Sort at Face

Primary Comminution

Bulk Sort on Belt

Particle Sort

Secondary Comminution

Physical Separation

Concentration

Liberation

Extractions
Break

Refining
Slag
Tailings

Valorisation

Remediation
Low Grade

Dilution

Development Waste

This set of projects has varying implementations impact tailings reduction versus their implementation
costs and timelines towards full commercialisation timeframe and cost. It is based on qualitative analysis
but fits within the 10–15-year goal range. Figure 10 only, however such a model might be useful for future
shows a conceptual approach on how these could direction-setting and trade-off analyses.

Tailings Reduction Roadmap Building the Pathways to Tailings Reduction 19

 Each technical project consists of interdependent
activities, which builds on each other and can facilitate
other projects. All projects are supported by the five
enabling factors. This interconnectivity implies that no
single technology associated with the roadmap delivers
a ‘straight-line’ solution to the challenge; they all interact
to reach the goal. There is a need for integration along
the way to develop plausible and commercial solutions
across the different identified technologies, requiring
collaboration across functional disciplines, and between
suppliers (OEMs) and technology integrators, as well
as clients to continue moving from incremental to
disruptive technology implementation.

Figure 10: Concept of Trade-Off Matrix: Impact vs Effort of Identified Tailings Reduction Measures

Project cost until first

Reusing commercialisation
tailings Waste valorisation (US$)
Potential impact on tailings reduction

Free
Does not
produce
tailings 10k
No waste mine architecture
In-situ leaching
100k
Reduces
Non-chemical extraction
tailings
over 2/3 Smart comminution 1M

Coarse flotation
up to 2/3 10M

Mech. cutting
up to 1/3 Ore sorting (sensor & bulk) 100M

Data platform
0 1B
1M 1Q 1Y 2Y 5Y 10Y

Duration (and effort) to first commercial use

ICMM Building the Pathways to Tailings Reduction 20

A Call to Action 03

As previously described, the ICMM Tailings Reduction reduction in tailings production. As described in the
Roadmap is the result of a multi-year collaboration previous sections, its main structure is a combination of
between ICMM members and suppliers. It aims to outline the prioritised technical projects and creating an enabling
how the industry should move towards a significant environment for them to succeed (Figure 11).

Figure 11: ICMM Tailings Reduction Roadmap

Zero waste
mine
architecture
In-situ
leaching

Non-
Coarse chemical
flotation extraction

Smart
Waste comminution
valorisation

Disruptive Transformative Incremental

3/3 2/3 1/3
Mechanical
cutting
Tailings
database

CEO
Enabling Leadership
Ore
sorting
Business Vision
Cases & Plan

Business
Narrative Partnering &
Ecosystem

Significant Reduction in Tailings

Tailings Reduction Roadmap 21

In this roadmap, the challenges and opportunities were
identified by stakeholders interested in progressing the
identified technologies. Being part of the ICMM Tailings
Reduction Roadmap process meant no single party
needed to address all the challenges alone. Instead
partnerships, ecosystem collaboration and teams have
been established to tackle each element, with the
lessons learnt being fed back to the whole group. This
allows for rapid progress to be made, as all projects
will benefit from the business case and partnering
ecosystem created.
The roadmap is a dynamic tool, and as such, will need
to be updated iteratively as projects evolve and more
information becomes available. Figure 12 shows the
critical pillars needed within any organization to enable
and track progress, independently of the initiative/
project chosen. Like all aspects of this roadmap, these
are interconnected, and companies need to take an
integrated approach that ensures ongoing improved
performance is achieved.

Figure 12: The Pillars for Commitment to Enable Progress

Attention Continuity

Collaboration Transparency

Resources Specifics

Attention Collaboration Resources Specifics Transparency Continuity

Aspiration: Partnerships: Measurement CEO commitment Business cases Vision

• Prioritise tailings • Connect and • Provide • Agree to share • Demonstrate • Ensure the
reduction as exchange operational experience, the impact of collective
much as SHE or openly resources to especially with tailings vs long-term goal
carbon footprint providing peers in the commercial remains intact.
Database
• Define reduction information, same impact of and members
• Share
or minimisation access to commodity tailings work collectively
knowledge and
of tailings as provide data for materials and reduction towards this
a long-term benchmarking, testing sites technologies common goal
company transparent • Provide some • Enable
commitment reporting and funding for like-for-like
• Be open to be matching with shared projects comparison
disrupted by (e.g. a joint R&D including true
suitable
new mining fund, pilot ESG impact
technologies
methods or projects etc)
mine designs
as a result of
adopting tailings
reduction
technologies

ICMM A Call to Action 22

ICMM has established the first enabling factor for
the initiative with the collective commitment from its
member CEOs to the goal. Through the process of
developing this roadmap, ICMM members and suppliers
have selected the projects of primary interest and
are working together to overcome the barriers and
demonstrate progress to reduce tailings. ICMM will
continue to support the initiative by driving towards
the collective vision, as well as sharing progress on the
technology projects through periodic progress reports.
It is recognised by all parties involved in this endeavour
that there is a long journey ahead, but paramount is
the belief that we have taken an important first step
in progressing the industry-wide adoption of tailings
reduction technologies.
Tailings Reduction Roadmap
By convening industry and suppliers in a collaborative
space, relationships have been built and partnerships
ignited. ICMM looks forward to sharing the progress
of this initiative as lessons are learnt and pilot testing
progresses.
Finally, ICMM hopes that this roadmap serves as
an initial point to signal strategic intent and action,
committing its members and suppliers to develop
specific milestones in support of the goal. We
encourage others who are interested in creating an
enabling environment for our identified technologies
to contact us, and help us to collaboratively develop
technologies and extraction processes that reduce, and
ultimately minimise tailings production.
A Call to Action 23
Glossary
Cut-off grade
A term used to inform decision making to distinguish
ore from waste material. It describes the value at which
the cost of mining and processing ore is equal to the
desired selling price for the commodity.
Enabling factors
The factors that can transform a feasible technology
into a viable business model for mining companies
to integrate into their operations. These are identified
as; CEO leadership, building a vision, establishing a
business partnering and ecosystem, establishing a
narrative and building a business case. These factors
interconnect to create an enabling environment. It
is only through progressing both technological and
enabling factors in parallel that progress can be made
towards industry wide adoption of new technologies,
which will contribute towards achieving the goal.
Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management
The result of the Global Tailings Review process, co-
convened by ICMM, PRI and UNEP. The Standard sets
a new, global benchmark to achieve strong social,
technical and environmental outcomes in tailings
management.
ICMM's goal on tailings
In 2018, ICMM members agreed to work collectively to
advance progress over the next 10-15 years towards
developing improved and cost-effective alternatives to
conventionally managed tailings storage facilities that
will reduce the risk of catastrophic failure.
ICMM
04
Mining value chain
The mining value chain includes every step in the
process from exploration of mineral deposits to design,
construction, operation, processing and production of
a product for customers and waste, which can also be
converted into a saleable product (valorisation).
Tailings
A by-product of mining, consisting of the processed
rock or soil left over from the separation of the
commodities of value from the rock or soil within which
they occur.
Technology integrators
Suppliers that develop systems to support mining
companies with the implementation of specific
technologies or solutions at a mine site level.
Technology projects
The prioritized technology projects identified for the
roadmap outlined in Section 1.2.
Technology Readiness Level
A form of measurement system used to assess the
maturity level of a particular technology. The technology
levels range from TRL 1 (lowest level where research
may have begun to be translated into applied research
and development) to TRL 9 (highest level where
the technology has been proven under operating
conditions).
Zero waste architecture
A method that eliminates waste either through
design or development of beneficial alternative uses,
transforming waste into another valued product.
24
Appendix A
Technologies Available
Workstream 1: Precision Geology
Data Acquisition Technologies
Imaging and Scanning Technologies
"Typhoon" High Power
Exploration (HPX)
Multispectral Remote
Imaging
Hyperspectral Imaging
Ground-Penetrating Radar
Seismic Reflection Imaging
Downhole Logging Tools
Advanced Prompt Fission
Neutron (APFN) Logging Tool
Bore Hole Logging/Nuclear
Magnetic Resonance
Logging Tool
Sensor Technologies
Combination of Scanning
Electron Microscopy (SEM)
and Energy- Dispersive X-ray
Spectroscopy
Automated Quantitative
Mineralogy
Laser Induced Fluorescence
(LIF) / Laser Induced
Breakdown Spectroscopy
(LIBS) Technology
Advanced Tomography
Quantum Sensors
Tailings Reduction Roadmap
05
Commodity TRL Engineering Principle
Bulks, Base Metals, 9 High voltage pulse power used for shock wave generation
PGMs, Minerals at depth to allow more high-resolution geophysical
interpretation
Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Multispectral imaging for discrete electromagnetic
PGMs signatures which can then be data processed for exploration
level mapping
Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Imaging across continuous spectrum of electromagnetic
PGMs signatures for higher definition exploration level mapping
Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Use of reflected radio waves to generate images of mineral
PGMs, Minerals systems
Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Reflection of seismic waves used to map mineral systems
PGMs, Minerals during mineral exploration
PGMs 9 Measurement of activated neutron decay pattern used to
identify specific elemental (nuclei) species
Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Activation and measurement of hydrogen electron spin state
PGMs, Minerals to identify water species
Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Excitation and identification of chemical bonds using
PGMs, Minerals electrons and X-rays allows identification of specific minerals
Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Use of automated and multiple scanning technologies (SEM,
PGMs, Minerals XRD, etc) and software to identify mineral species
Bulks, Base Metals, 8 Laser excitation of electrons allows identification of mineral
PGMs, Minerals species on surface
Bulks, Base Metals, 4 to 9 Feedback from X-rays, electric fields, magnetic fields (NMR)
PGMs, Minerals applied to rock can be interpreted to visualise rock porosity
and permeability
Bulks, Base Metals, 3 to 5 Interpret density distribution in ore bodies using quantum
PGMs, Minerals mechanical gravitational / magnetic properties
25
Technologies Available
Data Processing Technologies
Quantum Computing
Artificial Intelligence (AI) in
Mining and Metallurgical
Operations
Modelling Technologies
Machine Learning Applied to
Geological Modelling
IBM Exploration with Watson
Workstream 2: Precision Mining
Fracturing Technologies
Microwave Fracturing
High Voltage Pulse
Fragmentation
Laser Fragmentation
Thermal Fragmentation
Mining
Ultra-High Intensity Blasting
Non-Explosive Expansive
Substances
Wireless Initiation
Mining Technologies
Continuous Mining Machines
– Soft rock
Continuous Mining Machines
– Hard rock
Surface Miners
Autonomous Electric Drill
Blast Movement Monitoring
Tools
Advanced Measure While
Drilling (MWD)
Advanced Block Scheduling
Optimisation
ICMM
Commodity TRL Engineering Principle
Bulks, Base Metals, 5 Higher speed data processing allows easier analysis of huge
PGMs, Minerals geological data sets
Bulks, Base Metals, 7 Use of AI and machine learning to improve geological
PGMs, Minerals modelling
Bulks, Base Metals, 2 AI and machine learning applied to geological data to
PGMs, Minerals improve interpretation and prediction
Bulks, Base Metals, 8 Machine learning software applied to geological
PGMs, Minerals interpretation
Base Metals, PGMs, 1 or 2 Use of microwave energy to heat and expand water in rock
Minerals to induce micro cracks
Base Metals, PGMs, 4 Application of pulsed electric power creates shock waves in
Minerals rock at controllable energy levels
Base Metals, PGMs 1 or 2 Use of laser energy to heat, expand and weaken rock
surface to induce microcracking
Base Metals, PGMs 8 Application of thermal energy to a rock surface to induce
fracturing
Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Improved concentration of blast energy by pre-blasting sub-
PGMs, Minerals volumes of rock mass to create zones which reflect blast
shock waves back into the ore body
Base Metals, PGMs, 9 Injection of chemicals which swell into joints to initiate
Minerals fractures by compression
Bulks, Base Metals, 8 Wireless detonation allows more complex blast patterns
PGMs, Minerals which can be used to fragment rock
Bulks, Minerals 9 Rotating cutting surface applied to rock face breaks by sheer
stress
Base Metals, PGMs 3 to 7 Rotating cutting surface applied to rock face breaks by sheer
stress
Bulks, Minerals 9 Continuous surface excavation machines
Bulks, Base Metals, 6 Use of automation technology to automate drilling
PGMs, Minerals operations
Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Markers are used to physically map rock movement during
PGMs, Minerals blast and allow more selective mining
Bulks, Base Metals, 3 Use of feedback from drill sensors for real time ore body
PGMs, Minerals interpretation
Bulks, Base Metals, 2 Improved mine planning algorithms
PGMs, Minerals
Appendix A 26
Technologies Available Commodity TRL Engineering Principle
Workstream 3: Precision Segregation
Sensor Technologies
Surface Sensors
X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) Bulks, Base Metals, 9 X-ray excitation of chemical bonds in minerals
PGMs, Minerals
Laser Induced Fluorescence Bulks, Base Metals, 7 Laser induced excitation of chemical bonds in minerals
(LIF) / Laser Induced PGMs, Minerals
Breakdown Spectroscopy
(LIBS) Technology
Upconversion Fluorescence Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Laser induced, sequential excitation of chemical bonds in
(UF) PGMs, Minerals minerals
Infrared Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Infrared radiation used to estimate material thermal
PGMs, Minerals conductivity or heat maps
Near-Infrared Minerals 9 Near infrared radiation used to generate images of rock
surface which can sometimes give mineralisation information
Colour/Photometric Minerals 9 Visual identification of mineralisation by colour
Raman Spectroscopy Minerals 4 to 5 Mineral content can be inferred by Raman scattering of
monochromatic light
Magnets Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Use of magnets to separate magnetic components from
PGMs non-magnetic impurities
Penetrative Sensors
Neutron Analysis Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Atomic nuclei emit a signature spectra of gamma rays when
PGMs, Minerals bombarded with neutrons
Magnetic Resonance (MR) Base Metals 9 Hydrogen nuclei emit a characteristic EM signal when
subjected to a weak oscillating magnetic field and strong
background magnetic field
Electromagnetic Base Metals 9 An EM sensor used to measure electrical conductivity of
particles
Radiometric Minerals 9 Measurement of natural gamma ray emissions from
radioactive elements in minerals
Separation Technologies
Particle Sorting Minerals 9 Use of targeted air blasts to sort rocks one by one based on
individual particle level sensor data
Bulk Ore Sorting Bulks, Base Metals, 8 Identification and separation of accumulations of material of
PGM, Minerals similar properties as detected by sensors
Gravity Concentration Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Separation of particles based on density
PGM, Minerals
Screening Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Separation of particles based on size
PGM, Minerals
Coarse Particle Flotation Base Metals, PGMs 9 Fluid bed-based flotation equipment recovers coarse ore
and rejects coarse barren tailings
Improved Flotation Base Metals, PGMs 8 Different mechanical configurations designed to overcome
Technologies hydrodynamic limitations of conventional flotation and
improve recovery
ShovelSense Bulks, Base Metals, 6 Bucket mounted sensors used to analyse material being
PGMs, Minerals shovelled into trucks in real time

Tailings Reduction Roadmap Appendix A 27

Technologies Available
In-Pit Crushing and
Conveying
Truckless Operations
Preferential Breakage Technologies
High Voltage Pulse
Fragmentation
Microwave Fracturing
Laser Fragmentation
Thermal Fragmentation
Workstream 4: In-situ/Ex-situ Recovery
Well-to-Well ISR
Percolate ISR – Hillside /
Open Pit Mines
Percolate ISR – Underground
Mines
Percolate ISR (UG Mine) –
Hydrodynamic
Percolate ISR (UG Mine) –
Hydrostatic
Percolate ISR (UG Mine) –
Section Leaching
Percolate ISR (UG Mine) –
Combination System
Percolate ISR – Reactors
Underground Leach Silos
using ROES (Remote Ore
Extraction System)
Heap Leach
Workstream 5: Tailings Enhancement and Valorisation
Building/Construction Materials
Iron Ore / Road Pavements
Iron Ore / Aggregate in
Embankment Fill
Iron Ore / Concrete &
Aggregate
Iron Ore / Interlocking Pavers
& Concrete Blocks
ICMM
Commodity TRL Engineering Principle
Bulks, Base Metals, 8 In-pit crushing equipment allows transfer of sized ore into a
PGMs, Minerals continuous materials handling system
Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Shovels load material onto a system of mobile conveyors to
PGMs, Minerals transport rock continuously to surface
Base Metals, PGMs 4 Application of high voltage pulsed power to create shock
waves in rock at specific energy levels to create fractures
Base Metals, PGMs 1 Use of microwave energy to selectively heat and expand
water bearing material and induce microfractures
Base Metals, PGMs 1 Laser energy used to heat, weaken and expand surface of
rock inducing fragmentation
Base Metals, PGMs 8 Thermal energy used to heat rock surface and induce
spalling
Base Metals, PGMs, 7 to 9 Lixiviant flows through fractures between injection wells and
Minerals collection wells drilled into ore body
Base Metals, PGMs 1 Lixiviant injected into wells drilled into pit walls and allowed
to percolate to the pit lake or to collector wells drilled into the
subsurface
Base Metals, PGMs, 8 to 9 Percolation of lixiviant through identified blocks or
Minerals compartments of ore in underground mines
Base Metals, PGMs, 8 to 9 Lixiviant percolates vertically between injection and drainage
Minerals systems
Base Metals, PGMs, 8 to 9 Diffusion driven flow of lixiviant through low permeability ore
Minerals chambers
Base Metals, PGMs, 8 to 9 A series of horizontal bore holes arranged in rows are used
Minerals either as injectors or receptors on sections of the block
Base Metals, PGMs, 8 to 9 Bespoke design of a combination of systems to suit the
Minerals blocks of varying permeability
Base Metals, PGMs 1 Leaching in underground rubblised compartments
Base Metals, PGMs 1 or 2 Development of rubblised leach silos (stopes) with lixiviant
allowed to percolate through to drainage systems at the
bottom of the silo
Base Metals, PGMs 7 to 9 Lixiviant percolates through piles of sized ore stacked on
leach pads and collected in drainage systems
Bulks 8 Waste rock and tailings used as road base
Bulks 9 Waste rock and tailings used for embankment fill
Bulks 3 or 4 Waste rock and tailings used as fine and coarse aggregate
in concrete
Bulks 3 or 4 Waste rock and tailings used as aggregate in concrete
blocks
Appendix A 28
Technologies Available
Iron Ore / Artificial Rocks
Fly ash / Cement
Bauxite / Cement Clinker
Phosphate Limestone / Store
and Release Cover
Copper / Brick Production
Agricultural/Land Use
Coal / Soil
Bauxite / Absorbing Heavy
Metals
All / Agricultural Use of
Tailings to Improve Air
Quality
Phosphate / Fertiliser from
Phosphate Tailings
All / Parks and Recreation
Resource Recovery from Tailings
Bauxite / Extracting metal
from red mud (Roasting
magnetic recovery, Reducing
Smelter method, Direct
Magnetic Separation
Method, Leaching-extraction
method)
Coal / Ferric Sulphate
Coagulant Obtained by
Leaching from Coal Tailings
All / Reprocessing of Old
Tailings Ponds
Fly-Ash & Coal / Alumina
and Aluminium Recovery
using Hydrochloric Acid (HCl)
Leaching
Neutralisation
Bauxite / Red Mud
Neutralisation
Zinc / Tailings Neutralisation
Phosphate / Waste Rock to
Control Acid Mine Drainage
Tailings Reduction Roadmap
Commodity TRL Engineering Principle
Bulks 3 or 4 Waste rock and tailings mixed with binders and used to
produce artificial granite and marble material for bench tops,
etc
Bulks 9 Use of fly ash in cement
Bulks 9 Dicalcium silicate in red mud used in cement clinker to
reduce energy consumption for cement process
Minerals 4 Phosphate limestone waste used as a cover to reduce water
infiltration on reclaimed industrial land
Base Metals, PGMs 7 Making bricks by firing copper tailings mixed with lime and
water
Bulks 3 Use of prepared coal mine waste containing carbon as an
ingredient to balance soil chemistry for agriculture
Bulks 3 Red mud has been shown to absorb heavy metals from
contaminated soils
Bulks, Base Metals, 8 Sewing barley on reclaimed tailings storage sites to reduce
PGMs, Minerals wind erosion
Minerals 3 Coarse flotation of waste rock from phosphate mining to
recover additional phosphate product
Bulks, Base Metals, 9 Rehabilitation and repurposing of industrial sites for social
PGMs, Minerals value
Bulks 1 Further processing of red mud to extract valuable pay
metals, including some rare earths
Bulks 1 or 2 Pyretic coal tailings used to produce ferric sulphate for use
as a coagulant in water treatment
Base Metals, PGMs 1-9 Reprocessing of old tailings of sufficient grade to allow
economic recovery
Bulks 5 High pressure HCl leaching of fly ash or low-grade coal
followed by purification and crystallisation of alumina
Bulks 3 to 9 Neutralisation of red mud using seawater, waste acid,
carbonation, flue gas, etc
Base Metals, PGMs 9 Selective, stagewise precipitation of gypsum from sulfuric
acid bearing waste streams and recover valuable metals
back to the process
Minerals 2 Use of alkaline waste rock from phosphate mining to
neutralise acid generating rock waste and tailings
Appendix A 29
Technologies Available
Fly Ash & Coal / Acid Mine
Drainage Neutralisation
Bauxite / CO2 Capture in
Tailings
Nickel / CO2 Capture in
Tailings
Energy
Coal / Coal to Liquids
Coal / Syngas Generation
Coal / Power Generation
All / Solar farms on Tailings
Dams
ICMM
Commodity TRL Engineering Principle
Bulks 4 Use of basic fly ash or coal tailings waste to neutralise acid
generating rock and tailings
Bulks 4 Reaction of CO2 with red mud to form carbonate
(sequestration) as well as neutralise the red mud
Base Metals 4 Reaction of basic hydromagnesite in nickel tailings with CO2
to produce carbonate (sequestration)
Bulk 9 Conversion of ultrafine coal fraction to liquid fuels via syngas
generation or other catalyst assisted processes
Bulk 9 Steam reforming of ultrafine coal fraction to produce syngas
Bulk 9 Use of ultra-fine and coarse coal discard for thermal power
generation
All 6 Repurposing acreage on closed tailings dams for solar farms
Appendix A 30
Appendix B 06

ICMM Members Suppliers

African Rainbow Minerals Bergteamet

Alcoa CMIC

Anglo American CRCore

AngloGold Ashanti Epiroc

Antofagasta Minerals Expande Mineria

Barrick Hatch

BHP IMA

Boliden Impulstec

Codelco Innovation Architects

Freeport-McMoran Metso Outotec

Glencore MineRP

Gold Fields Mining 3

Hydro NextOre

JX Novamera

Minera San Cristobal NRCan

Minsur Panalytical

MMG Prospect Mining Studio

Newcrest Robbins

Newmont Tomra

Orano

Rio Tinto

Sibanye Stillwater

South32

Sumitomo Metal Mining

Teck

Vale

Tailings Reduction Roadmap 31

ICMM stands for mining with principles.

We bring together a third of the global metals and

mining industry, along with key partners to drive
leadership, action and innovation for sustainable
development, ultimately delivering a positive
contribution to society.

Through collaboration, ICMM member companies

set the standard for responsibly produced minerals
and metals in a safe, just and sustainable world.

This publication contains general guidance only and should not be relied upon as
a substitute for appropriate technical expertise. Although reasonable precautions
have been taken to verify the information contained in this publication as of the date
of publication, it is being distributed without warranty of any kind, either express
or implied. This document has been prepared with the input of various International
Council on Mining and Metals (‘ICMM’) members and other parties. However, the
responsibility for its adoption and application rests solely with each individual member
company. At no stage does ICMM or any individual company accept responsibility
for the failures or liabilities of any other member company, and expressly disclaims the
same. Each ICMM member company is responsible for determining and implementing
management practices at its facility, and ICMM expressly disclaims any responsibility
related to determination or implementation of any management practice.

Each ICMM member company is responsible for determining and implementing

management practices at its facility, and ICMM expressly disclaims any responsibility
related to determination or implementation of any management practice. Moreover,
although ICMM and its members are committed to an aspirational goal of zero fatalities
at any mine site or facility, mining is an inherently hazardous industry, and this goal
unfortunately has yet to be achieved.

In no event shall ICMM (including its officers, directors, and affiliates, as well
as its contributors, reviewers, or editors to this publication) be liable for damages
or losses of any kind, however arising, from the use of or reliance on this document,
or implementation of any plan, policy, guidance, or decision, or the like, based on this
general guidance. ICMM, its officers, and its directors expressly disclaim any liability
of any nature whatsoever, whether under equity, common law, tort, contract, estoppel,
negligence, strict liability, or any other theory, for any direct, incidental, special, punitive,
consequential, or indirect damages arising from or related to the use of or reliance
on this document.

The responsibility for the interpretation and use of this publication lies with the user
(who should not assume that it is error-free or that it will be suitable for the user’s purpose)
and ICMM. ICMM’s officers and directors assume no responsibility whatsoever for errors
or omissions in this publication or in other source materials that are referenced by this
publication, and expressly disclaim the same.

Except where explicitly stated otherwise, the views expressed do not necessarily represent
the decisions or the stated policy of ICMM, its officers, or its directors, and this document
does not constitute a position statement or other mandatory commitment that members
of ICMM are obliged to adopt.

ICMM, its officers, and its directors are not responsible for, and make no representation(s)
about, the content or reliability of linked websites, and linking should not be taken
as endorsement of any kind. We have no control over the availability of linked pages
and accept no responsibility for them.

The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication
do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of ICMM, its officers,
or its directors concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or
of its authorities, or concerning delimitation of any frontiers or boundaries. In addition,
the mention of specific entities, individuals, source materials, trade names, or commercial
processes in this publication does not constitute endorsement by ICMM, its officers,
or its directors.

This disclaimer should be construed in accordance with the laws of England.

ICMM
34–37 Liverpool Street
London EC2M 7PP
United Kingdom
+
44 [0] 20 7467 5070
info@icmm.com
icmm.com September 2022

ICMM 32