Golder has completed a white paper, which provides an overview of the information available on selenium water treatment technologies.
The document was released by the North American Metals Council’s Selenium Working Group (NAMC-SWG) and is the second technical addendum to the white paper on Selenium Removal Technologies developed by the NAMC-SWG in 2010.
The most recent report explores technologies for the treatment of selenium associated with industrial activities.
Although selenium is naturally occurring, industrial activities can concentrate it to levels that require treatment to protect groundwater and aquatic life.
Selenium treatment can be challenging though, which is something that industry has been working with for decades. The NAMC white paper brings together the current knowledge on the implemented technologies, reviews their advantages, disadvantages and costs and provides a realistic picture of what is currently achievable in the field.
According to Golder, understanding which treatment options are currently proven is a critical factor in not only meeting regulatory guidelines for existing operations, but also in determining the economic viability of new projects.
Read the full report here.
(This article first appeared in the Canadian Mining Journal)