Location: Rundu, Kavango East Namibia

During 2010 GCS Water & Environmental Engineering Namibia (Pty) Ltd was commissioned to compile a “Final Draft Mine Closure Plan” for a Zinc mine in southern Namibia. Investigation involved an assessment of the Env and social aspects for the potential closure of the mine. An assessment was completed at the mine on the waste rock dumps, open pit and surface water management system. The social investigation involved and assessment of the Rosh Pinah town with RoshSkor and local and regional authorities to optimise the mine closure strategy. The investigation of the waste rock dumps and tailings facility involved the re-assessment of the placement of the waste with a defined sustainable closure. Strategy. The original Mine Closure Plan for the mining pit was to backfill the pit with waste rock and inert material. During the closure Study, it was identified that backfilling of the open pit would be a very costly and it was proposed that the mine pit should be allowed to flood, and this be incorporated into the Zinc mine closure plan as a final pitlake.GCS proposes to setup a groundwater flow model in order to investigate the groundwater flow and the pit water balance, coupled with a contaminant transport model (geochemical model) which would investigate the chemical evolution of the water, stratification and the potential for mirromixes (potential inversions of pit water with seasonal temperature fluctuations).