From the commencement of our Cannington silver-lead-zinc operation in northwest Queensland, Australia, in the late 1990s, the leadership team has worked hard at developing a workplace culture where every individual strives for excellence. In pursuing this goal, and in line with BHP Billiton’s overriding commitment to environmental responsibility and sustainable development, a key focus at Cannington is waste management. The strategies developed are producing significant benefits, for the operation and the broader community.
In the early stages of the Cannington operation, caring for the environment presented many challenges, not the least of which was apprehension by some of the local pastoral community that their heritage values, water supply and income might be threatened by the mining operation. Compliance with environmental protection laws alone was not enough to allay their concerns; initiatives needed to be visible and measurable and show that stewardship of the environment would be in good hands. A further challenge was that management strategies needed to cope with the remoteness of the area and the lack of waste management services and disposal facilities.
Waste management strategies
As far back as 1992, Cannington began to develop strategies that would enable responsible waste management. As well as being innovative, these strategies have been simple and achievable and directed towards:
- avoiding, where practical, products that could not be reused or recycled
- reducing the volume of waste
- ensuring disposal was an option only if no other treatment was available.
From those early days, products have been purchased in bulk to minimise packaging. Waste oils, batteries, scrap metal, construction scrap and marketable recyclables have been stockpiled until quantities are sufficient for transport to Mt Isa or Townsville. Colour-coded waste segregation has been introduced to ensure that recyclable and general waste products are not contaminated by lead and zinc. Specifically coloured wheelie bins are used for the separate collection of general waste, recyclables, hydrocarbon and lead and zinc contaminated products.
Lola Sexton from Eurest Support Services, who is crib room and laundry coordinator at Cannington, says, ‘Properly separating everything is the key to successful waste management with my job. Encouraging people to do the right thing with the waste being thrown out in the crib room increases the amount we recycle. I also try to repair and recycle as much as I can as it comes through the laundry; this not only helps the environment it also helps to reduce our costs’.
In addition, cardboard and aluminium cans are compacted prior to transport offsite, village kitchen vegetable scraps are broken down by a large worm farm, combustible hydrocarbon products such as oily rags and filters are eliminated in a high-temperature incinerator, and rubber and leather gloves are washed and dried in the site laundry and redistributed.
Recycling initiatives and minimisation processes have extended the life of the mine landfill facility from one year to three years. Reduced landfill development and management costs have resulted in savings of around AUD$200 000 every three years. Impacts on the environmental values within the mining leases have been reduced through less disturbance and fewer landfill sites.
Employee education and involvement has improved the overall understanding of environmental stewardship, resulting in fewer environmental incidents and helping to fulfil the drive towards sustainable development.
‘We’re in a remote location,’ states Cannington process plant operator Martin Belsey. ‘When we finally leave here it has to be as close as possible to the state it was in when we arrived. We recycle our gloves, including leather and rubber; we sort our waste and send it off site for responsible disposal. We always have a mind to minimise the impact we have here. That’s the way it is, as it should be’.
Extending the benefits
Beyond the operation, recent initiatives have included encouraging the on-site drilling contractor to negotiate with their supplier to change the container in which drilling mud is supplied. Instead of a hard plastic 20-litre container, which is difficult to recycle because of its bulk, they have agreed to use a 20-litre plastic bladder encased in a cardboard box with a reusable spout (like a big wine cask). Storing the flat pack cardboard boxes and plastic bladders saves the supplier space, the driller receives more products per pallet, and the new pack is easily recycled – a win-win situation for all.
Phil Lonie, Project Manager at Major Pontil Contractors, agrees. He has reported that ‘the new containers have reduced our waste by 95 per cent, enabled us to transport 50 per cent more product per pallet and made manual handling easier’.
Pialba State School at Hervey Bay in Queensland has emulated Cannington’s waste management strategies in its School Environmental Management Plan. The school was chosen as the 2002 national winner of the Minerals Council of Australia’s EnviroSmart Award, an annual event for schools.
The children at Pialba have implemented a program to rehabilitate their school grounds and gardens and reduce power and water consumption. They have also involved the wider community by seeking facilities from their local government authority for the recycling of plastics, aluminium and paper from classrooms and eating areas and, in school newsletters, promoting a reduction in plastic wrappings for school lunches.
Today at Cannington, waste management is considered to be a fundamental part of the mining operation. With the ongoing influence that its own employees have when they take home their learnings from the workplace, and through examples such as the changed drilling mud packaging and Pialba State School’s EnviroSmart initiatives, Cannington is also helping the community to adopt sustainable practices.
Feedback
Site Map
Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions