JUST over four years ago, this column informed readers of what the mining industry is starting to do regarding plants being used to absorb small amounts of minerals left in the ground after the main mining process was completed.
This process is known as “phytoremediation” or “photomining”.
These specialised plants are called hyper accumulators, and can absorb high concentrations of metal like zinc, nickel, cobalt and copper as well as arsenic, and store them in their roots’ stems and leaves.
These are later harvested and the left-over metals are extracted through different processes making this quite a lucrative addition to the value of a deposit, seeing as there is no real cost involved.
Back a long while ago when there was a disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the Ukraine, there were a number of different plants trialled to soak up the contaminated waste from the air and the ground.
It was found that sunflowers used to soak up radioactive metals like caesium and strontium employed phytoremediation to absorb contaminates from the soil and water before being safely disposed of.
Other plants tested and used were Indian mustard and hemp.
These plants are known to draw toxic chemicals into their structure, offering a natural way to clean contaminated environments.
Mining companies are employing similar methods in Australia to value-add to their main mining experience.
But instead of safely disposing of their left-over precious metals, they are actively finding ways to leach extra value out of the ground through these plants.
Mining is becoming more sophisticated, with laser guided technologyusing all-new AI-inspired tools to seek out minerals that in the past they had to drill first.
It’s good to see that the mining industry is being more thoughtful in the extraction of these metals, using better methods to cut down well-known problems.
