UTAS Honours Project at Legacy Scotia Mine Site

The Mining Sector Innovation Initiative Program (MSIIP) managed by Mineral Resources Tasmania (MRT) funds collaborative work between government, industry, and research institutions. The program focuses on four research streams, one being the investigation of innovative solutions for mine rehabilitation and remediation.

In January 2023, University of Tasmania Honours student, Daniel Fisher, supervised by Centre of Ore Deposit (CODES) researchers Clare Miller and Matthew Cracknell, completed an Environmental Earth Science honours project, funded through MSIIP, at the legacy Scotia Mine site in northeast, Tasmania.

The legacy alluvial tin mine was re-established as an open pit mine in 2007. Mining operations were largely unsuccessful, resulting in the cancellation of the mining lease. Construction of the mine has left a substantial footprint, including a flooded main pit and three tailings dams affected by acid and metalliferous drainage (AMD).

The UTAS study aimed to understand the lithological, geochemical, and mineralogical drivers of water quality and establish pre-mining environmental conditions at the Scotia Mine site. A range of geochemical and geophysical techniques were used to better understand the transport of AMD on site. Drill core samples were logged and collected for geochemical laboratory testing to determine the sources of acid generation. Additionally, geophysical techniques were used to determine potential hydrological pathways through the constructed dam wall materials.

The results of this project will guide ongoing rehabilitation at the Scotia Mine site and inform future rehabilitation projects and mining operations at other sites in northeast Tasmania.

^{Drilling program at Scotia mine site.}