79 a price: copper, in particular, represents 46% of the estimated 8,500 global tailings sites worldwide, with an annual global total of 10-12 billion tons of tailings produced each year (Global Tailings Review, 2020). Water use and tailings management, which are inextricably linked, represent risk and constraints as the mining sector looks to meet this increased demand. Societal and environmental concerns related to water and tailings have escalated globally as water supply and quality are threatened, and the volume of tailings expands significantly due to lower ore grades. Water use and tailings-related challenges have surfaced as water supply and quality are often stressed in many mining jurisdictions. Lower ore grades processed with conventional approaches result in a higher volume of tailings, a situation exacerbated by attempts to increase supply in response to market demand. Valenta et al. (2023) have forecasted a dramatic increase in mining waste production for copper alone through to 2050. A significant increase in tailings storage volume constitutes a significant risk for the mining industry, which has recognized the absolute necessity of safety. The industry is acting to implement changes after catastrophic tailings dam failures at Mount Polley (Canada) in 2014, Samarco (Brazil) in 2015 and Brumadinho (Brazil) in 2019. Catastrophic failures make the headlines, but on average there are 5-6 major incidents reported globally each year since 2000; triggered by events such as heavy rainfall or seismic activity, poor dam construction and/or maintenance, and simply the volume of storage demand due to ore grades (Morrill et. al, 2022; Zhu, Zhang & Puzrin, 2024). This risk is recognized as an industry-wide issue: the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM, 2022) supports adoption of industry standards on tailings management and explores the development of breakthrough technologies through its tailings reduction roadmap. 2. ACHIEVING THE COMPLETE ELIMINATION OF TAILINGS So how we might consider and achieve the complete elimination of tailings, and which key knowledge gaps and obstacles remain to be addressed? This can be a daunting question to consider, as there is no silver bullet to eliminate waste and tailings, and challenges vary by commodity, deposit, geography, and operating legacy. This paper presents the following continuum of approaches to address tailings that can form the basis for a technology and innovation roadmap for a mining company that wishes to embark on a zero waste and tailings optimization journey. In brief, the approaches are: 1. Optimize Recovery Recover all the value that is possible from waste and tailings, including minerals and water. This can also improve safety through dewatering and dry stacking. 2. Eliminate Waste
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