Establishing leaching environmental impact assessment tools in the development of a WA framework for by-product re-use and classification

The Challenge

Large volumes of by-products are produced by mineral processing and related industries in Western Australia every year.

These materials could represent valuable commodities for construction, landfill and related purposes, but the lack of a formal regulatory process for assessing their environmental impacts prevents their commercial re-use.

Key Findings

This research successfully validated the LEAF (Leaching Environmental Assessment Framework) methodology developed by the US Environmental Protection Agency for use under Western Australian conditions to determine the long-term environmental impacts of industrial by-product re-use.

An initial database of local Western Australian soils and by-products has been developed for the LEAF modelling tool to allow robust predictions of the environmental impact of proposed or potential by-product uses.

Benefit to WA

The LEAF tools can provide greater confidence to industry, Government and the community regarding the environmental impacts of by-product use for specific applications in Western Australia.

This increased confidence will support commercial use of by-product materials In Western Australia, creating the potential for them to become a valuable resource in the local industrial landscape.

ChemCentre capability will allow expansion of this database as other soil types and materials are tested in the future.

Keywords: Leaching Environmental Assessment Framework, LEAF, by-product, Environmental Impact Assessment, leaching