Chronology of major tailings dam failures - For a thriving ...

1 HOME WISE Uranium Project > tailings Dam Safety > Chronology of major tailings dam failures (from 1960)(last updated 4 Sep 2014)Note: Due to limited availability of data, this compilation is in no way completeDateLocationParentcompanyOre typeType ofIncidentReleaseImpacts2014, Polleymine, nearLikely, BritishColumbia,CanadaImperial MetalsCorp. copper, goldtailings million m3of tailings , m3 ofwater, and m3 ofinterstitial watertailingsflowing intoadjacentPolley Lakeand, throughHazeltineCreek, intoQuesnel Lake(Mitchell Bay)2014,Feb. 2 Dan RiverSteam Station,Eden, NorthCarolina, USADuke Energy coal ashcollapse of anold drainagepipe under a 27-acre ash wastepondabout 82,000short tons[74,400 t] oftoxic coal ashand 27 milliongallons[100,000 m3] ofcontaminatedwaterash flowingthroughdrainage pipeinto Dan River2013, ,Kajaran,Syunikprovince,ArmeniaCronimetM ining AG copper,molybdenumdamage oftailings pipeline?tailingsflowing intoNorashenikRiver forseveral days2012, site,Newfoundland,Canada copperembankmentdam failure ,width 50 m non-consumptionwater advisoryhas beenissued for theTown of SouthBrook (viewdetails -Newfoundlandand LabradorDepartment ofEnvironmentandConservation)2012, ,Kainuuprovince,FinlandTalvivaaraMiningC ompany Plc nickel,(uranium by-productplanned)leak fromgypsum pondthrough a"funnel-shapedhole"hundreds ofthousands ofcubic metres ofcontaminatedwaste waternickel and zincconcentrationsin nearbySnow Riverexceeded thevalues that areharmful toorganismstenfold or evena hundredfold,uraniumconcentrationsmore thantenfold (viewdetails)2011, , SongpanCounty,SichuanProvince,ChinaXichu anMinjiangElectrolyticManganesePlantmang anesetailings damdamaged fromlandslidescaused fromheavy rains?

2 Tailingsdamagedresidentialroads andhouses,forcing 272people toleave; tailingswere washedinto theFujiang River,leaving200,000people withoutdrinking watersupply2010,Oct. 4 Kolont r,Hungary(Aerial View:Google Maps)MAL MagyarAlum nium bauxitetailings damfailure (viewdetails)700,000 cubicmetres ofcaustic red mudseveral townsflooded, 10people killed,approx. 120people injured,8 squarekilometresflooded2010, ,PeruUnidad MineraCaudalosa Chica? tailings damfailure21,420 cubicmetres oftailingscontaminationof r o Escaleraand r oOpamayo 110kmdownstream2009, ,Magadanregion, Russia?goldtailings damfailure afterheavy rain(seebackgroundinfo - SRIC2004)?eleven homeswere carriedaway by themudflow; atleast oneperson waskilled2009,May14 HuayuanCounty,XiangxiAutonomousPrefectur e,HunanProvince,China?manganesetailings damfailure(capacity:50,000 cubicmetres)?The landslideset off by thetailings damfailuredestroyed ahome, killingthree andinjuring , fossilplant,Harriman,Tennessee,USAT ennesseeValleyAuthority coal ashretention wallfailureRelease of cubicyards [ cubicmetres] of ashyslurryThe ash slidecovered 400acres [ ] asdeep as 6 feet[ metres].

3 The wave ofash and mudtoppled powerlines, coveredSwan PondRoad andruptured a gasline. Itdamaged 12homes, andone person hadto be rescued,though no onewas ,Sep. 8 Taoshi, LinfenCity, Xiangfencounty, Shanxiprovince,ChinaTashan miningcompanyironCollapse of awaste-productreservoir at anillegal mineduring rainfall?A mudslideseveral metreshigh buried amarket,several homesand a three-storeybuilding. Atleast 254people aredead and , ,Chingola,ZambiaKonkola CopperMines Plc(KCM) (51% VedantaResources plc)copperfailure oftailings slurrypipeline fromNchangatailingsleaching plantto Muntimpatailings dumps?Release ofhighly acidictailings intoKafue river;highconcentrationsof copper,manganese,cobalt in riverwater;drinking watersupply ofdownstreamcommunitiesshut down2006,April30near Miliang,Zhen'anCounty,Shangluo,ShaanxiPr ovince,ChinaZhen'an CountyGold MiningCo. damfailure duringsixth upraisingof dam?The landslideburied about40 rooms ofninehouseholds,leaving 17residentsmissing.

4 Fiveinjured peoplewere taken tohospital. Morethan 130 localresidents wasreleased intothe Huashuiriver,contaminatingit approx. failure ,because thecompany wastrying toincrease thecapacity of thepond at a fasterliquid poured2005,April14 Bangs Lake,JacksonCounty,Mississippi,USAM ississippiPhosphatesCorp. phosphaterate thannormal,according toOfficials withthe MississippiDepartment ofEnvironmentalQuality (thecompany hasblamed the spillon unusuallyheavy rainfall,though)approx. 17million gallonsof acidic liquid(64,350 m3)into adjacentmarsh lands,causingvegetation todie2004, Lake,BritishColumbia,CanadaTeck ComincoLtd. mercurytailings dam(100-metreslong and 12-metres high)collapses duringreclamationwork6,000 to 8,000m3 of rock, dirtand waste watertailings spilledinto 5,500 haPinchi Lake2004,Sep. 5 Riverview,Florida, USAC argill CropNutrition phosphatea dike at the topof a 100-foot-high gypsumstack holding150-milliongallons ofpolluted waterbroke afterwaves driven byHurricaneFrances bashedthe dike'ssouthwestcorner60 milliongallons(227,000 m3) ofacidic liquidliquid spilledinto ArchieCreek thatleads toHillsboroughBay2004,May22 Partizansk,Primorski Krai,RussiaDalenergocoal ashA ring dike,enclosing anarea of roughly1 km2 andholding roughly20 million cubicmeters of coalash, broke.

5 Thebreak left a holeroughly 50meter wide inthe ,000 cubicmeters of ashThe ashflowedthrough adrainage canalinto a tributaryto thePartizanskayaRiver whichempties in toNahodka Bayin PrimorskiKrai (east ofVladivostok).For detailsdownloadSept. 2004report (PDF)by PaulRobinson,SRIC2004,March20 Malv si, Aude,FranceComurhex(Cog ma/Areva)decantationandevaporationpond ofuraniumconversionplantdam failureafter heavy rainin precedingyear (viewdetails)30,000 cubicmetres of liquidand slurriesrelease led toelevatednitrateconcentrationsof up to 170mg/L in thecanal ofTauran forseveral weeks2003,Oct. 3 Cerro Negro,Petorca prov.,Quinta region,ChileCia MineraCerro Negrocoppertailings damfailure50,000 tonnesof tailingstailings flowed20 kilometersdownstreamthe r o LaLigua2002, Marcelino,Zambales,PhilippinesDizon CopperSilver Mines,Inc. overflow andspillway failureof twoabandonedtailings damsafter heavy rain(view details)?Aug. 27: sometailings spilledintoMapanuepeLake andeventually intothe Sto.

6 TomasRiverSep. 11: lowlying villagesflooded withmine waste;250 familiesevacuated;nobodyreported hurtso far2001, o das guas Claras,Nova Limadistrict, MinasGerais, BrazilMinera o RioVerde Ltdaironmine waste damfailure (viewdetails)? tailings wavetraveled atleast 6 km,killing at leasttwo mineworkers, threemore workersare missing2000, ,Guangxiprovince,China?? tailings damfailure?at least 15people killed,100 missing;more than 100housesdestroyed2000, , MartinCounty,Kentucky,USAM artin CountyCoalCorporation(100% CoalCompany, Inc., Richmond,VA (100%Fluor Corp. ))coaltailings damfailure fromcollapse of anundergroundmine beneaththe slurryimpoundment(view details)250 milliongallons(950,000 m3) ofcoal wasteslurry releasedinto localstreamsAbout 75miles (120km) of riversand streamsturned anirridescentblack, causinga fish killalong the TugFork of theBig SandyRiver andsome of alongthe Tug wereforced to turnoff theirdrinking ,Sep. 8 Aitik mine,G llivare,SwedenBoliden Ltd.

7 Coppertailings damfailure frominsufficientperviousness offilter drain(view details)release of m3 ofliquid into anadjacent settlingpond,subsequentrelease of m3 ofwater (carryingsome residualslurry) from thesettling pondinto theenvironment 2000, ,RomaniaRemin tailings damfailure afterheavy rain22,000 t ofheavy-metalcontaminatedtailingscontami nationof the Vaserstream,tributary of theTisza report UNEP report (527k PDF) tailings damcontaminationof theSomes/Szamosstream,2000, Mare,RomaniaAurul (EsmeraldaExploration ,Australia (50%),Remin ( ))goldrecoveryfrom oldtailingscrest failureafter overflowcaused fromheavy rain andmelting snow(view details)100,000 m3 ofcyanide-contaminatedliquidtributary of theTisza River,killing tonnesof fish andpoisoning thedrinking waterof more than 2million peoplein Hungary1999, , Surigaodel Norte,PhilippinesManila MiningCorp. (MMC)goldtailings spillfrom damagedconcrete pipe700,000 tonnesof cyanidetailings17 homesburied, 51hectares ofricelandswamped1998, , SpainFertiberia ,Foretphosphatedam failureduring storm(view details)50,000 m3 ofacidic and toxicwater 1998, Frailes,Aznalc llar,SpainBoliden Ltd.

8 ,Canadazinc, lead,copper,silverdam failurefrom foundationfailure (viewdetails)4-5 million m3of toxic waterand slurrythousands ofhectares offarmlandcovered withslurry1997,Dec. 7 MulberryPhosphate,Polk County,Florida, USAM ulberryPhosphates, failure200,000 m3 ofphosphogypsumprocess waterbiota in theAlafia Rivereliminated1997, Valley,Arizona, USABHP Copper coppertailings damslope failure 230,000 m3 oftailings andmine rocktailings flowcovers 16hectares1996, ,Nazca, Peru??liquefactionfailure ofupstream-typetailings damduringearthquakemore than300,000 m3 oftailingsflow runout ofabout 600meters, spillinto river,croplandscontaminated1996, Porco,BoliviaComsur (62%),Rio Tinto (33%)zinc, lead,silverdam failure400,000 tonnes300 km ofPilcomayorivercontaminated1996, ,MarinduqueIsland,PhilippinesPlacer DomeInc. , Canada(40%)copperLoss of tailingsfrom storage pitthrough olddrainage million m3 Evacuation of1200 residents,18 km of riverchannel filledwith tailings ,US$ 80milliondamage1995, Cross,New ZealandCoeur d'Al ne, Idaho, USAgoldDam movementof damcontaining 3million tonnesof tailings (continuing)(view details )Nil (so far)Nil (so far)1995,Sep.

9 2 Placer, Surigaodel Norte,PhilippinesManila foundationfailure50,000 m312 peoplekilled, coastalpollution1995, , GuyanaCambior Inc. ,Canada (65%),Golden StarResources Inc.,Colorado, USA(30%)goldtailings damfailure frominternal damerosion(preliminaryreport ontechnicalcausation) million m3of cyanideslurry80 km ofEssequiboRiver declaredenvironmentaldisaster zone(view details)1994, ,HillsboroughCounty,Florida, USAIMC-Agrico phosphatedam failureNearly m3 ofwater from aclay settlingpondspill intonearbywetlands andthe AlafiaRiver,Keysvilleflooded1994,Oct. 2 Payne CreekMine, PolkCounty,Florida, USAIMC-Agrico phosphatedam million m3of water from aclay settlingpondmajority ofspill containedon adjacentmining area;500,000 m3released intoHickeyBranch, atributary ofPayne Creek1994, Meade,Florida, USAC argill phosphate?76,000 m3 ofwaterspill intoPeace Rivernear FortMeade1994,JuneIMC-Agrico,Florida, USAIMC-Agrico phosphateSinkhole opensinphosphogypsumstake?

10 Release ofgympsum andwater intogroundwatertailingstraveled 4 km1994, ,Merriespruit,South AfricaHarmony GoldMinesgoldDam wallbreachfollowing heavyrain600,000 m3downstream,17 peoplekilled,extensivedamage toresidentialtownship1994, Dam,Roxby Downs,South AustraliaWMC ,uraniumleakage oftailings damduring 2 yearsor morerelease of up to5 million m3 ofcontaminatedwater intosubsoil?1993, ,Florida, USAC argill phosphate??Fish killedwhen acidicwater spilledinto ArchieCreek1993 Marsa, PeruMarsa failurefromovertopping?6 people killed1992, Istok1, near StaraZagora,Bulgaria?ash/cinderdam failurefrom inundationof the beach500,000 m3?1992, tailingspond, Padcal,Luzon,PhilippinesPhilex of damwall(foundationfailure)80 milliontonnes?1991, mine,Kimberley,BritishColumbia,CanadaCom inco Ltd lead/zincdam failure (liquefaction inold tailingsfoundationduringconstruction ofincrementalraise)75,000 m3the slidedmaterial wascontained inan adjacentpond1989, ,Perryville,Maryland,USA?