An alternative analysis for reclamation of heap leach pads

Cyanide heap leach pad operations present challenging conditions for reestablishment of vegetation. Heap leach material at the Santa Fe/Calvada Mine was generally unsuitable for plant growth, and available topsoil resources salvaged during mining were limited. A multidisciplinary project team developed a process to identify and evaluate a range of realistic reclamation approaches. The range in alternatives considered environmental, regulatory, and financial aspects. Five alternatives were evaluated against the criteria most critical to determining reclamation success: regulatory compliance, conservation objectives, and management considerations. The result of the analysis provided Homestake with a technical basis for management decisions regarding the reclamation approach for the heap leach pads.