Reducing water consumption

SMI researchers have found that mines could become more environmentally responsible by significantly reducing the amount of water they use.

The Centre for Water in the Minerals Industry (CWiMI) has completed a study into coal mine water use that indicates that mines could potentially reduce their fresh water use by up to 75 percent and their total water use by around 40 percent. Water is used in coal mining to control dust at the coal face in underground mines and on haul roads. Coal is also cleaned to improve its combustibility, which reduces CO2 emissions, and to ensure that it is suitable for steel making. Coal cleaning uses a considerable amount of water.

CWiMI developed a novel “systems model” of coal mines to allow information from one site to be compared to that from another. Using this mechanism, the Centre was able to compare the impacts of each mine using, and losing, water at rates as low as the industry best, for a range of water uses.

The project was funded by the Australian Coal Association Research Program and was made possible with the assistance of corporate and mine site staff who provided information, access to mine sites and expert knowledge with data aggregation for the modelling. This close association with industry is a hallmark of the SMI and facilitates uptake of research at a rapid rate.

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