Environmental Policy Statement
PolyMet will protect air and water resources while promoting efficient use of natural resources through an open and transparent process.
Taking this policy, creating a philosophy and putting it into practice requires a commitment to put the environment first – in planning, choosing control options, analyzing potential impacts, and designing multiple safeguards. During operation, ongoing training and vigilance will ensure that environmental protection is a day-to-day expectation for every employee.
The ultimate result of this environmental philosophy is that PolyMet will conserve and protect the air, water, and other natural resources upon which we all depend.
This philosophy means that PolyMet:
- Is dedicated to the conservation and protection of environmental resources.
- Will conduct itself in an open and transparent manner regarding environmental monitoring, performance and reporting.
- Plans to collect, treat, and maximize the reuse of process water to minimize the requirement for new water.
- Will consider energy efficiency and potential environmental effects in the selection of processes, equipment, products and materials.
- Will incorporate plans for ultimate closure and reuse of disturbed land.
- Will ensure that all employees understand how their activities affect the environment.
Environmental Philosophy in Action
- Re-Using Resources: PolyMet will re-use a major portion of the processing facilities of the former LTV Steel Mining Company—preventing these resources from being scrapped and eliminating the need to build new ones. PolyMet also will re-use LTV’s tailings basin.
- Minimizing Impacts: PolyMet strategically developed a compact footprint for its mine site and plant site to minimize the impact on wetlands. PolyMet will replace the wetlands it impacts as well as create significant new wetlands at closure. The reuse of the LTV infrastructure also minimizes impacts of disturbing new ground.
- Analyzing Potential Impacts: PolyMet used state-of-the-art models to predict the potential environmental impacts. To avoid under-predicting impacts, PolyMet ran models using conservative assumptions – i.e. worst-case scenarios – and chose controls that will protect the environment even under these unlikely, worst-case situations. This approach was used to design control technologies for the mine, tailings basin, stockpiles, processing plant, emission controls, and closure activities.
- Using Multiple Safeguards: PolyMet has chosen to design multiple safeguards to ensure the environment is adequately protected. For example, waste rock stockpiles will be constructed on liner systems with engineered drains that will direct any water collected on the liner to a wastewater treatment system. Stockpiles will also have cover systems to prevent water from entering the stockpile, greatly reducing the potential for Acid Rock Drainage. PolyMet will collect, treat, recycle and re-use water in the process.
- Choosing the Best Emission Controls: PolyMet has chosen to install new, more efficient air emission controls on the former LTV processing equipment—even though this is not required by environmental regulations.
- Maximizing Mineral Recovery/Minimizing Energy Use: PolyMet will recover the full suite of metals contain in its ore: copper, nickel, cobalt, platinum, palladium and gold. The sulfur in the ore will be used to generate the energy needed to recover these minerals, minimizing the need for additional process energy.