The Elements of Innovation Discovered
The Elements of Innovation Discovered
Metal Tech News - December 2, 2024
Value.Space delivers satellite-based audits of dams, railways, highways, and other infrastructure.
Tailings storage facilities are structures designed to contain waste material produced during mining.
Reijo Pold
To help safeguard people, environment, and mineral supply chains critical to the clean energy transition, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) is collaborating with Value.Space to deploy satellite-based monitoring and risk profiling to strengthen the United Nations' mining safety initiatives.
The primary objective of this partnership is to lower the risk profile of tailings storage facilities (TSF), large impoundments that hold the silt-like waste material remaining after the sought-after minerals have been extracted from rock. These impoundments usually involve an earthen dam on at least one side to hold in the tailings and water.
While engineered for durability and typically safe, these large structures can levy an enormous ecological, human, and financial toll if they fail.
UNECE points to the disastrous 2019 failure of the Brumadinho tailings dam at the Córrego do Feijão iron ore mine in Brazil, which killed 270 people and caused $270 billion in losses, as an example of the need for monitoring tailings storage facilities.
Satellite analysis after the disaster revealed warning signs as early as 15 months before the collapse, emphasizing missed opportunities to prevent the disaster.
The commission says large mine tailings failures can have cross-border impacts, affecting communities, ecosystems, and economies.
On an even larger scale, proactively preventing these incidents is critical to the stability of commodity and financial markets, particularly as the global transition to green economies drives demand for sustainably sourced minerals and metals.
Tailings storage facilities are structures designed to contain waste material produced during mining.
Through its 1992 Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents, UNECE is committed to lessening and preventing the impacts of industrial accidents, including those at mine tailings facilities.
As part of this objective, the commission is bringing Value.Space's cutting-edge satellite technologies to the forefront of tailings storage facilities risk management.
As a company that delivers satellite-based structural health audits of dams, mines, property, railways, highways, and other infrastructure, Value.Space is particularly well-suited for monitoring and evaluating tailings storage facilities.
"The use of cutting-edge satellite technology will further sharpen UNECE's support to identify and manage risks linked to mine tailings in the Pan-European region and beyond," said Claudia Kamke, Environmental Affairs Officer for the UNECE Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents. "Strengthening mine tailings safety is especially crucial given the projected increases in mining activities over the coming decades, including to meet the demands of the energy transition."
Reijo Pold
Under the collaboration, UNECE and Value.Space will monitor up to 10 tailings storage facilities. The findings of this satellite surveillance will be compiled into a report that analyzes the risks and reveals potential structural issues that can be addressed before a major failure occurs.
"By leveraging satellite monitoring, TSF owners and regulators will have access to actionable insights to prevent disasters before they occur," said Reijo Pold, founder of Value.Space. "This proactive approach not only protects communities and ecosystems worldwide, but also bolsters global markets and financial stability by mitigating the economic consequences of catastrophic failures."
With more than 16 years of covering mining, Shane is renowned for his insights and and in-depth analysis of mining, mineral exploration and technology metals.
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