RESOLVING OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS CAUSED BY THE PROCESSING OF COPPER ORE
Keywords:
Copper ore, Tailing pond, Sewage sludge, ReclamationAbstract
The constantly increasing need of raw materials for industry and energetic requires to grow the extraction of ores. Various
mining resources are employed in different sectors of manufacturing, construction, transport, and human life. However, intensive
mining and processing of minerals have negative impact on pedosphere. The present paper deals with effectiveness of
technical and biological reclamation of “Elshitsa” tailing pond which was build to store the industrial waste products from copper
ore mine, located in the village of Elshitsa, Panagyurishte municipality, Bulgaria. The negative impact of tailing pond on
the environmental components is result of toxic characteristics of the tailings. The waste toxicity flows from the high content
of sulphur, copper and lead which exceed the amounts assumed as typical of soils. The copper amount is 27 times higher than
in natural soils, the lead – 16 and sulphur’s – about 10 times. Besides their direct toxicity in terrestrial and aquatic environment,
Cu and Pb are slightly biodegradable and cause long-lasting lethal effect. Restoration of damaged and contaminated sites was
carried out in two stages – engineering-technical reclamation and biological reclamation. Combined usage of sludge from Plovdiv
Treatment Plant for waste water, encapsulation of tailing surface with a polymer - Soil Cement and appropriate selection
of grass species formed a tightly sealed cover. The assessment of reclaimed site showed that the strong anthropogenic pollution
of the environment components is quickly prevented by applied effective technological solution for reclamation. There is no
surface runoff and there are no pollutants to be controlled after three years of tailing pond’s reclamation. The analysis of plants
grown on reclaimed terrain shows that levels of heavy metals in their tissues are within the safe concentrations.
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