2014 Annual and CSR Report Switch to Spanish Language
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Closure and Reclamation

All mines have finite lives, and all Hudbay mines and development projects have closure plans that are supported by financial provisions. Once mining is finished, we aim to leave behind land that will support productive uses for future generations.

As a member company of the Mining Association of Canada (MAC), Hudbay has committed its new projects and operations to management of mine closure in accordance with the TSM framework on mine closure. The framework consists of eight key elements, ranging from effective and sustainable closure planning, to consultation with communities, continuous improvement, and monitoring of reclamation programs. As part of this commitment, Hudbay identifies opportunities to help communities plan for sustaining economic development and incorporates community issues into long-term closure considerations.

In addition to the TSM framework, Hudbay’s mine closure planning in Peru is guided by IFC performance standards, as well as by Peruvian mine closure regulations. In all jurisdictions in which Hudbay operates, mining companies are required to plan for closure before the start of operations and to provide financial assurance to relevant regulatory agencies for proposed mine reclamation activities.

Over the course of our history, we have closed many mine sites, including some in environmentally sensitive areas. In the process, we have developed core competencies in mine closure and remediation. Our practices include the following:

Designing for closure from the beginning – By considering closure from the start of new projects, we can incorporate design features that will minimize both our impact on the environment during and after operations and our costs of closure. Principles applied at new mine sites include designing buildings to be easily dismantled, and determining in advance the acid-generating potential of waste rock and then developing shafts or declines appropriate to rock conditions or segregating waste rock according to acid-base accounting results in order to manage it from the start.

Progressive rehabilitation – By progressively reclaiming areas once they are no longer needed for mining activities, operations are able to start reclamation sooner and reduce the work to be done when the mine closes. We have an ongoing rehabilitation program at Flin Flon, aimed at restoring the environment in and around the complex and enhancing the visual surroundings. Activities include the removal of old structures and equipment, the reconfiguring and revegetating of tailings sites and the greening of spaces between the community and the operations.

Closed mines – Hudbay’s closed mine site activities are tailored to the applicable jurisdictional regulatory requirements and the specific and unique characteristics of each site. Closed mine site activities can include monitoring activities and adaptive management strategies to ensure the effectiveness of the reclamation activities until such time as reclamation objectives are determined, in consultation with regulators, to be complete.

2014 Performance

  • Progressive rehabilitation activities were performed in Flin Flon, including revegetating approximately two hectares on the non-active area of the tailings facility. At Constancia, a 3.2-hectare quarry was rehabilitated and revegetated.
  • Revised closure plans were submitted to authorities for both Lalor and Reed, reflecting the switch from advanced exploration projects to operating mines. An update to the Flin Flon metallurgical complex plan was also initiated.
  • Updates were made to Constancia’s closure plan to incorporate recent studies and technological changes that will reduce costs and financial guarantees that Hudbay must provide annually to the Peruvian government. The updated plan will be submitted in 2015. As part of the process, we conducted citizen participation workshops to review parts of the plan.
  • Over the past five or more years, Rosemont has supported extensive studies by the University of Arizona’s Department of Natural Resources on reclamation techniques, procedures, and the appropriate vegetation to use. These studies were systematic and sequential, starting with a study of the existing vegetation, moving into greenhouse studies and continuing on to field tests at the Rosemont site. The results have guided the reclamation techniques that will be used and how plants will be managed. They have also set expectations for success. Hudbay continues to support the university research, reviewing the effect of grazing on reclamation, the effect of stockpiling soils on soil nutrients, and the techniques that will be most successful for salvaging agave, an important food source for an endangered bat. Over the past years, these studies have resulted in a series of graduate student studies and papers that have advanced the science of mined land reclamation in the southwest.
  • Current activities at Rosemont require some amount of closure and reclamation. The rehabilitation work done in this regard can be seen on the various drill sites and roads throughout the property. Because further mining activities are planned in the area, the priority of the rehabilitation work was to make the facilities safe and stable, which is the standard set by the Arizona State Mine Inspector.