Former Rum Jungle Uranium Mine Rehabilitation – Stage 2A Detailed Engineering Design

Since 2009, the NTG and Australian Governments have been working under a Partnership Agreement to complete investigative work to develop an improved rehabilitation strategy for Rum Jungle that is consistent with the views of traditional Aboriginal owners and that meets contemporary rehabilitation standards. 

SLR has worked with NTG to develop the rehabilitation strategy and then undertake the detailed engineering design, construction costs and schedule. The scope of the works comprises the relocation of existing potential acid forming (PAF) waste rock and other acid metalliferous drainage (AMD)and historic mining impacted materials, to new waste storage facilities (WSFs) and a water filled pit using contemporary remediation protocols. This includes the treatment of AMD impacted surface water and groundwater. 

Key Geotechnical and Mine Waste Engineering components of our scope included: 

• Development of a novel construction methodology for the WSFs to address long term AMD sources 

• Landform design, including consideration of erosion, surface water, capping considerations and revegetation for the new waste storage facilities 

• Backfilling of the waterfilled Main Pit, constrained by the presence of heavily contaminated water and in-situ tailings material 

• Design of a water treatment facility to treat contaminated groundwater and displaced water from the Main Pit, prior to discharge off site 

• Design of the realignment of the East Branch Finniss River, that is currently diverted, to flow back through the Main Pit.