Tailings Management is a Top Company Priority
2/25/2022
Responsible management of mining waste, or tailings, is a critical part of our daily operations and our long-term responsibility to our communities.
Hecla was an early adopter of the dry stack method of tailings management at our Greens Creek operation in Alaska. Here, tailings are filtered to a low moisture content and then trucked and placed into a “dry stack,” which is not an impoundment. This method minimizes the tailings surface footprint, reduces the amount of water retained in the tailings, and lessens the consequences of any potential failure. It also allows the opportunity for concurrent reclamation that further enhances the site’s stability.
Hecla 2020 Tailings Management Fact Sheet PDF
