scholarly journals Re-Thinking Mining Waste through an Integrative Approach Led by Circular Economy Aspirations

Minerals ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 286 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maedeh Tayebi-Khorami ◽  
Mansour Edraki ◽  
Glen Corder ◽  
Artem Golev
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Mining Industry ◽  
Mining Waste ◽  
Integrative Approach ◽  
Mining Wastes ◽  
Social Environmental ◽  
Social And Environmental Impacts

Mining wastes, particularly in the form of waste rocks and tailings, can have major social and environmental impacts. There is a need for comprehensive long-term strategies for transforming the mining industry to move toward zero environmental footprint. “How can the mining industry create new economic value, minimise its social and environmental impacts and diminish liability from mining waste?” This would require cross-disciplinary skills, across the social, environmental, technical, legal, regulatory, and economic domains, to produce innovative solutions. The aim of this paper is to review the current knowledge across these domains and integrate them in a new approach for exploiting or “re-thinking” mining wastes. This approach includes five key areas of social dimensions, geoenvironmental aspects, geometallurgy specifications, economic drivers and legal implications for improved environmental outcomes, and circular economy aspirations, which are aligned with the 10 principles of the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM). Applying circular economy thinking to mining waste presents a major opportunity to reduce the liability and increase the value of waste materials arising from mining and processing operations.

Mine waste reuse and reprocessing: an important step for the implementation of the circular economy in Europe

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Françoise Bodénan ◽  
Yannick Ménard ◽  
Patrick d'Hugues
Keyword(s):  
Circular Economy ◽  
Mine Waste ◽  
Construction Materials ◽  
Mining Industry ◽  
Mining Waste ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Secondary Resources ◽  
Mineral Fraction ◽  
Long Term Treatment

<p>Whereas there are growing needs for mineral resources (metals for the energy and digital transitions<br>and construction materials), the mining industry must produce them from poorer, more<br>heterogeneous and more complex deposits. Therefore, volumes of mine waste produced (including<br>tailings) are also increasing and add up to waste from mining legacy. For example in Europe (x27): 732<br>Mtons of extractive waste are generated per year and more than 1.2 Btons of legacy waste are stored<br>all over the European territory. The localisation (and potential hazards) are well known and covered<br>by the inventories carried out in EU countries under the Mining Waste Directive.<br>At the same time, Europe is implementing the circular economy approach and put a lot of emphasis<br>on the resource efficiency concept. In this context, reprocessing operation to recover both metals and<br>mineral fraction is studied with the objective of combing waste management (reducing final waste<br>storage and long-term impact) and material production from secondary resources.<br>Numerous industrial experiences of reprocessing of mine waste and tailings exist all over the world to<br>recover metals such as copper, gold or critical raw materials - CRM They concern mainly active mine<br>where both primary and secondary resources are considered in profitable operations; for example in<br>Chile, South Africa, Australia. Mineral fraction recovery is often not considered which still leaves the<br>industry with a high volume of residual minerals to store and manage.<br>In addition, legacy mining waste are potentially available for reprocessing. In this case, numerous<br>mining liabilities issues need to be managed. Some of the European legacy mining waste have residual<br>valuable metals that could be recovered but some of them have very low metal contents. In Europe,<br>classical rehabilitation operations – usually at the charge of member states and local authorities – is<br>the priority and concern the reduction of instabilities and impacts to the environment including heap<br>remodelling, covering and water management with long-term treatment. Completing this risk<br>management approach by a circular economy one is a very active R&D subject in EU27.<br>This presentation will give an overview of EU research projects which tackled the legacy mining waste<br>challenge from inventory to process development. Several process flowsheets to recover metals were<br>designed and tested on several case studies with CRM – REE, Co, W, Sb, etc. Initiatives to reuse mineral<br>fraction are also underway and should be ready for commercialisation in the coming years.<br>Resources efficiency concept and the circular economy implementation starts on mining sites. In order<br>to facilitate the implementation of this approach, the technical solutions will need to be included in<br>innovative global initiatives covering also legal (liability management), environmental (Life Cycle<br>Analysis approaches) and social (acceptance) questions.</p>

scholarly journals Management of Fruit Industrial By-Products—A Case Study on Circular Economy Approach

Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Débora A. Campos ◽  
Ricardo Gómez-García ◽  
Ana A. Vilas-Boas ◽  
Ana Raquel Madureira ◽  
Maria Manuela Pintado
Keyword(s):  
Food Waste ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Industrial Applications ◽  
Global Issues ◽  
Global Issue ◽  
Social Environmental ◽  
Valuable Compounds ◽  
By Products

The management of industrial fruit by-products is important not only to decrease the volume of food waste accumulated in the landfills but also to develop strategies through reuse with the purpose to valorise and add economic value. The disposal of food waste leads to different global issues in different sectors, such as social, environmental and economical. These by-products represent a rich source of valuable compounds (polyphenols) with high antioxidant activity, which can be extracted through biotechnological methodologies for future industrial applications. In this context, the management of fruit by-products is challenged to move from a linear economy to a circular economy. Therefore, the purpose of this review is to provide a critical view of an integrated valorisation of fruit by-products to overcome a global issue, via the production of antioxidant extracts with high economic value. A case study of pineapple processing industrialization in a circular economy is explored and discussed.

PENERAPAN CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY DALAM PENGELOLAAN WAKAF PRODUKTIF

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Masruchin Masruchin
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Infrastructure Development ◽  
Religious Activities ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Local Society ◽  
Business Units ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Impact ◽  
A Company ◽  
Social And Environmental Impacts

Corporate Social Responsibilityis a concept that a company has various forms of responsibility to all stakeholders including consumers, employees, shareholders, communities and the environment in all aspects of the company's operations that include economic, social, and environmental aspects. Therefore CSR is closely related to "sustainable development", in which a company, in carrying out its activities must base its decisions not only on the impact on economic aspects, such as the level of profits or dividends (profits), but also must consider the social and environmental impacts that arise from that decision, both for the short term and the longer term.Pondok Modern Darussalam Gontor (PMDG), in managing its Productive Waqf by establishing business units which mostly involve workers from the local society around PMDG. They are employed according to their skills. This is a form of implementing CSR in order to help advance and improve the welfare of the local society. The existence of these various business units is one of the educational facilities and as a form of CSR application which is actually intended to educate in the fields of independence, entrepreneurship, sincerity and sacrifice.PMDG involvement in social activities that are useful for the local society such as infrastructure development and village facilities, regeneration of students who are from around PMDG to be able to get higher education with funding from the PMDG, doing guidance to the local society through various religious activities, educational and economic activities is a form of PMDG responsibility to the local society environment and also to all stakeholders such as students, Ustadz, employees, so as to provide social and environmental impacts for the short term and the longer term.Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibilityandproductive waqf.

scholarly journals Tenebrio molitor in the circular economy: a novel approach for plastic valorisation and PHA biological recovery

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paola Sangiorgio ◽  
Alessandra Verardi ◽  
Salvatore Dimatteo ◽  
Anna Spagnoletta ◽  
Stefania Moliterni ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Circular Economy ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Tenebrio Molitor ◽  
World Population ◽  
Plastic Pollution ◽  
Biological Recovery ◽  
Great Opportunity ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
The One

AbstractThe increase in the world population leads to rising demand and consumption of plastic raw materials; only a small percentage of plastics is recovered and recycled, increasing the quantity of waste released into the environment and losing its economic value. The plastics represent a great opportunity in the circular perspective of their reuse and recycling. Research is moving, on the one hand, to implement sustainable systems for plastic waste management and on the other to find new non-fossil-based plastics such as polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs). In this review, we focus our attention on Tenebrio molitor (TM) as a valuable solution for plastic biodegradation and biological recovery of new biopolymers (e.g. PHA) from plastic-producing microorganisms, exploiting its highly diversified gut microbiota. TM’s use for plastic pollution management is controversial. However, TM microbiota is recognised as a source of plastic-degrading microorganisms. TM-based plastic degradation is improved by co-feeding with food loss and waste as a dietary energy source, thus valorising these low-value substrates in a circular economy perspective. TM as a bioreactor is a valid alternative to traditional PHA recovery systems with the advantage of obtaining, in addition to highly pure PHA, protein biomass and rearing waste from which to produce fertilisers, chitin/chitosan, biochar and biodiesel. Finally, we describe the critical aspects of these TM-based approaches, mainly related to TM mass production, eventual food safety problems, possible release of microplastics and lack of dedicated legislation.

scholarly journals Introducing a Degrowth Approach to the Circular Economy Policies of Food Production, and Food Loss and Waste Management: Towards a Circular Bioeconomy

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 3379 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Hoehn ◽  
Jara Laso ◽  
María Margallo ◽  
Israel Ruiz-Salmón ◽  
Francisco José Amo-Setién ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Waste Management ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Food Production ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Food Loss ◽  
Use Of Resources ◽  
Assessment Approach ◽  
New Policies

There is a growing debate surrounding the contradiction between an unremitting increase in the use of resources and the search for environmental sustainability. Therefore, the concept of sustainable degrowth is emerging aiming to introduce in our societies new social values and new policies, capable of satisfying human requirements whilst reducing environmental impacts and consumption of resources. In this framework, circular economy strategies for food production and food loss and waste management systems, following the Sustainable Development Goals agenda, are being developed based on a search for circularity, but without setting limits to the continual increase in environmental impacts and resource use. This work presents a methodology for determining the percentage of degrowth needed in any food supply chain, by analyzing four scenarios in a life cycle assessment approach over time between 2020 and 2040. Results for the Spanish case study suggested a degrowth need of 26.8% in 2015 and 58.9% in 2040 in order to achieve compliance with the Paris Agreement targets, highlighting the reduction of meat and fish and seafood consumption as the most useful path.

scholarly journals Environmental Consequences of Closing the Textile Loop—Life Cycle Assessment of a Circular Polyester Jacket

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 2964
Author(s):  
Gregor Braun ◽  
Claudia Som ◽  
Mélanie Schmutz ◽  
Roland Hischier
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Textile Industry ◽  
System Analysis ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Environmental Consequences ◽  
Energy And Material Flows

The textile industry is recognized as being one of the most polluting industries. Thus, the European Union aims to transform the textile industry with its “European Green Deal” and “Circular Economy Action Plan”. Awareness regarding the environmental impact of textiles is increasing and initiatives are appearing to make more sustainable products with a strong wish to move towards a circular economy. One of these initiatives is wear2wearTM, a collaboration consisting of multiple companies aiming to close the loop for polyester textiles. However, designing a circular product system does not lead automatically to lower environmental impacts. Therefore, a Life Cycle Assessment study has been conducted in order to compare the environmental impacts of a circular with a linear workwear jacket. The results show that a thoughtful “circular economy system” design approach can result in significantly lower environmental impacts than linear product systems. The study illustrates at the same time the necessity for Life Cycle Assessment practitioners to go beyond a simple comparison of one product to another when it comes to circular economy. Such products require a wider system analysis approach that takes into account multiple loops, having interconnected energy and material flows through reuse, remanufacture, and various recycling practices.

scholarly journals Influencing Factors of the Mineral Carbonation Process of Iron Ore Mining Waste in Sequestering Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 1866
Author(s):  
Noor Allesya Alis Ramli ◽  
Faradiella Mohd Kusin ◽  
Verma Loretta M. Molahid
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Particle Size ◽  
Chemical Composition ◽  
Iron Ore ◽  
Divalent Cations ◽  
Mining Industry ◽  
Mining Waste ◽  
Aluminum Silicate ◽  
Mineral Carbonation ◽  
Carbonation Process

Mining waste may contain potential minerals that can act as essential feedstock for long-term carbon sequestration through a mineral carbonation process. This study attempts to identify the mineralogical and chemical composition of iron ore mining waste alongside the effects of particle size, temperature, and pH on carbonation efficiency. The samples were found to be alkaline in nature (pH of 6.9–7.5) and contained small-sized particles of clay and silt, thus indicating their suitability for mineral carbonation reactions. Samples were composed of important silicate minerals needed for the formation of carbonates such as wollastonite, anorthite, diopside, perovskite, johannsenite, and magnesium aluminum silicate, and the Fe-bearing mineral magnetite. The presence of Fe2O3 (39.6–62.9%) and CaO (7.2–15.2%) indicated the potential of the waste to sequester carbon dioxide because these oxides are important divalent cations for mineral carbonation. The use of small-sized mine-waste particles enables the enhancement of carbonation efficiency, i.e., particles of <38 µm showed a greater extent of Fe and Ca carbonation efficiency (between 1.6–6.7%) compared to particles of <63 µm (0.9–5.7%) and 75 µm (0.7–6.0%). Increasing the reaction temperature from 80 °C to 150–200 °C resulted in a higher Fe and Ca carbonation efficiency of some samples between 0.9–5.8% and 0.8–4.0%, respectively. The effect of increasing the pH from 8–12 was notably observed in Fe carbonation efficiency of between 0.7–5.9% (pH 12) compared to 0.6–3.3% (pH 8). Ca carbonation efficiency was moderately observed (0.7–5.5%) as with the increasing pH between 8–10. Therefore, it has been evidenced that mineralogical and chemical composition were of great importance for the mineral carbonation process, and that the effects of particle size, pH, and temperature of iron mining waste were influential in determining carbonation efficiency. Findings would be beneficial for sustaining the mining industry while taking into account the issue of waste production in tackling the global carbon emission concerns.

scholarly journals Sustainability Assessment with Integrated Circular Economy Principles: A Toy Case Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 3856
Author(s):  
Rebeka Kovačič Lukman ◽  
Vasja Omahne ◽  
Damjan Krajnc
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle Assessment ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Product Life Cycle ◽  
Sustainability Assessment ◽  
Social Impacts ◽  
Life Cycle Costing ◽  
Social Life Cycle Assessment

When considering the sustainability of production processes, research studies usually emphasise environmental impacts and do not adequately address economic and social impacts. Toy production is no exception when it comes to assessing sustainability. Previous research on toys has focused solely on assessing environmental aspects and neglected social and economic aspects. This paper presents a sustainability assessment of a toy using environmental life cycle assessment, life cycle costing, and social life cycle assessment. We conducted an inventory analysis and sustainability impact assessment of the toy to identify the hotspots of the system. The main environmental impacts are eutrophication, followed by terrestrial eco-toxicity, acidification, and global warming. The life cycle costing approach examined the economic aspect of the proposed design options for toys, while the social assessment of the alternative designs revealed social impacts along the product life cycle. In addition, different options based on the principles of the circular economy were analysed and proposed in terms of substitution of materials and shortening of transport distances for the toy studied.

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