2024-08-20 02:33:57
Ecology is one of the priorities of mining companies.
The annual costs for protection and restoration of the environment are BGN 40 million. The most money is invested in the removal and treatment of waste water. Investments are also aimed at soil and groundwater protection, as well as waste recovery.
A third wastewater treatment plant is being built in the Elatsite-Med mining complex. The chosen technology cleans more than one pollutant at the same time. It is expected to be put into operation in 2025. It will ensure better protection of the Malak Iskar River.
On the territory of “Elatsite-Med” there is also a modern system for the collection, preliminary treatment and temporary storage of waste. The one in the mining complex is for ferrous and non-ferrous metals, the second one is for production non-hazardous and hazardous waste, and a similar site was put into operation in the beneficiation complex, which replaced the existing temporary storage places. In 2023 alone, nearly 4,800 tons of ferrous and non-ferrous metal waste, end-of-use tires, packaging, paper and cardboard, motor and hydraulic oils, filters, absorbents and filter materials, etc., were handed over for recovery.
Reclamation of disturbed ground is a key commitment of any mining enterprise. At “Elatsite-Med” it started in 2011 and so far more than 306 decares of the embankments of the “Elatsite” mine and 432 decares of the tailings storage facility “Benkovski-2” have been restored. By the end of the year, reclamation and afforestation of 59 decares of the tailings storage facility is expected, and another 80 decares are planned for 2025. Thus, the entire aerial slope in the “Ai Dere” section and terrains on the territory of the mining complex will be returned as close to their natural appearance as possible.
“Asarel-Medet” uses drones to monitor the “Lilyakovitsa” tailings pond and for planning in its mine. It is the first Bulgarian mining company to use such technology for monitoring the operational upgrade of the tailings storage facility. The device has been in service since the beginning of 2020.
The weather is monitored by four automated weather stations. They are connected, which allows remote control and provides data necessary for the planning and implementation of the investment and production activities of “Asarel-Medet”. In emergency situations, this technology will make it possible to have data on the size of the atmospheric anomaly and, through quick action, to prevent environmental and material damage.
Since the beginning of the reclamation activity in 1974, “Mini Maritsa-East” has restored about 47,500 decares, including 31,500 decares for agricultural use and 16,000 decares for forestry. These lands have been handed over with restored fertility, for the most part they have indicators better than those seized for coal mining.
Recultivated in 2023, about 491 decares of the external embankment “Mednikarovo” in the mine “Troyanovo-3” are about to be accepted by a commission appointed by the Minister of Agriculture and Food, because they are for agricultural use.