Archives

Review of Credibility Crisis

Today we present the review of Credibility Crisis, Brumadinho and the politics of mining industry reform. The authors of this book are A. Hopkins and D. Kemp, 2021. To be precise, we focus our discussion on the process and choices that finally shaped the GISTM, as the authors report them, rather that on the opinions the authors express. Indeed, as the book makes it clear, not all voices had the same weight during the process and the Panel deliberations. Overall,…

Read More

ORE2 tailings tactical and strategic

As stated earlier ORE2_Tailings™ allows to define in a clear, transparent, and reproducible way which risks are tolerable or intolerable. Among the intolerable risks ORE2_Tailings™ allows to define which risks are tactical and which ones are strategic. We discussed tactical and strategic planning for dam portfolio using ORE2_Tailings™  in https://www.riskope.com/2021/06/30/tactical-and-strategic-planning-for-dam-portfolio-using-ore2_tailings/.  In our reports we show that risks of the considered portfolio belong to a three families as follows: tolerable, meaning they are below the risk tolerance of the client. These…

Read More

Reading the ICMM Guidance and Conformance protocols

We started reading the ICMM Guidance and Conformance protocols with great interest and were pleased with a number of specifications we saw. Of course, an endeavor of this magnitude and scope will stir a lot of interest in the mining world. From our end, given our long experience in tailings system risks, we could not resist to compare the protocols to our day-to-day practice. We noted areas where more detailed explanations would likely benefit the mining industry and the public.…

Read More

Laotian hydro dam collapse: more about risks

Last week we discussed a recent catastrophic failure. Now we delve more into the Laotian hydro dam collapse: more about risks. We go back to the first-cut estimates we published. They delivered staggering values at portfolio level and, of course,  intolerable risks. The image above courtesy of MDA shows an image with the: location of the collapsed dam, partially drain reservoir, flooded fields and changes in river channels, and finally, flooded villages. In an international current-affairs magazine for the Asia-Pacific region we read interesting…

Read More

Oroville Dam Spillway Incident Report

The Oroville Dam Spillway Incident Report became public in January 2018. The story it tells is remarkably similar to the one we assumed, based on publicly available information in the aftermath of the accident. As risk advisers and managers we discuss below the various statements in the Oroville Dam Spillway Incident Report. We aim at highlighting risk biases and potential management changes to avoid similar developments. Oroville Dam Spillway Incident Report Conclusions Commented The Independent Forensic Team Report made a number…

Read More

UNEP Tailings Dams report and residual risk assessment

UNEP Tailings Dams report and residual risk assessment discusses the joint UNEP-GRID Arendal assessment entitled “Mine Tailings Storage: Safety Is No Accident” from a risk assessment point of view. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) released the report in October 2017 in Geneva. The report urges States and the industry to “end deadly and damaging mining waste spills by enforcing a zero-failure objective”. We believe that this objective requires some additional definitions and details. That is to make it truly…

Read More

Geohazards Caused by Human Activity

INTECH published The long shadow of Human Generated Geohazards: Risks and Crises, our chapter in the book entitled Geohazards Caused by Human Activity! The wait is over! You can freely download the text here .  We sincerely hope you will enjoy it. Please drop us a note and let us know your comments on the chapter. Geohazards Caused by Human Activity Our chapter in geohazards caused by human activity is geared toward focusing attention on the “damage and risk” side…

Read More

The Long Shadow of Human Generated Geohazards: Risks and Crises

The Long Shadow of Human Generated Geohazards: Risks and Crises is the title of a chapter  by C. Oboni & F. Oboni of the book entitled Geohazards Caused by Human Activity (ISBN 978-953-51-4765-7, Arvin Farid, Ph.D., P.E., Associate Professor Civil Engineering, Boise State University, Idaho, USA, Editor). The book is due to be e-published soon by Intech with the goal to provide free online access to research. The Long Shadow of Human Generated Geohazards: Risks and Crises The purpose of the…

Read More

Archive

Hosted and powered by WR London.