Water in Mining Global Summit

Attendees, exhibitors & solutions

Who this event is for

Industry trends

Key trends shaping this market and its wider industry.

Market news

Latest updates from across the market.

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A range of accommodation options near the venue and across key areas.

Local transport

Get around the city with these convenient transport options.

Frequently asked

Glossary

1

Mine water balance

The accounting of water entering, stored within and leaving a mine site, including rainfall, groundwater, process water, recycling and discharge. Operators use it to size treatment, plan storage and test closure scenarios.

2

Dewatering

Removing groundwater or surface water from an open pit, underground working or tailings area to keep operations dry and stable. Dewatering systems often combine pumps, sumps, pipelines and treatment before reuse or discharge.

3

Process water

Water used in milling, separation, flotation, leaching or dust suppression. Water in Mining sessions often examine how much process water can be recycled without hurting recovery or product quality.

4

Tailings

Fine waste material left after valuable minerals are extracted from ore. Tailings are stored in engineered impoundments or managed through thickening, filtration or dry stacking, with water recovery a central design issue.

5

Tailings water reclaim

Recovering water from tailings ponds or thickener overflow for reuse in the plant. Reclaim systems reduce freshwater intake and the volume of water that must be treated before discharge.

6

Acid rock drainage (ARD)

Acidic, metal-bearing water formed when sulfide minerals in mine waste or exposed rock react with oxygen and water. ARD management can involve covers, blending, neutralisation and active or passive treatment.

7

Metal leaching

The release of metals such as copper, zinc, arsenic or selenium from mine waste into water, sometimes without strong acidity. Treatment may use precipitation, adsorption, wetlands or reverse osmosis depending on the chemistry.

8

Water treatment plant (WTP)

An engineered facility that removes suspended solids, metals, sulphate, salinity or other contaminants from mine water. Design choices depend on discharge limits, reuse targets and available energy.

9

Reverse osmosis (RO)

A membrane process that pushes water through a semi-permeable membrane to remove dissolved salts and some contaminants. Mines use RO for desalination, brine concentration and high-quality process water, but pretreatment and brine disposal are critical.

10

Brine management

Handling the concentrated salt stream left after desalination or membrane treatment. Options include evaporation, crystallisation, deep-well disposal or managed discharge, subject to regulation.

11

Water recycling and recirculation

Returning treated or surplus water to the plant, dust suppression or drilling instead of taking fresh water. High-recovery circuits can cut intake but may raise scaling, corrosion and water-quality risks.

12

Water stewardship

Managing water beyond the fence line, including shared catchments, community water needs and cumulative effects. Mining companies increasingly report stewardship targets alongside production and safety metrics.

13

Closure water management

Planning for water quality and quantity after a mine stops operating. It covers pit lakes, waste-rock covers, passive treatment, spillways and long-term monitoring.

14

Discharge compliance

Meeting permit limits for volume, pH, metals, sulphate, toxicity or temperature before water leaves the site. Compliance monitoring usually includes sampling, lab analysis and regulatory reporting.

15

Thickener

A tank that uses gravity and flocculant to settle solids from slurry, producing a clearer overflow and a denser underflow. Thickeners are common in tailings and process-water circuits.

16

Filter press

A mechanical dewatering device that presses slurry between plates to produce a dry cake and filtrate. Mines use filter presses for tailings filtration, concentrate dewatering and water recovery.

17

Water quality monitoring

Sensors, samplers and lab programs that track pH, conductivity, turbidity, metals and flow. Real-time telemetry is increasingly used to adjust treatment and catch permit exceedances early.