Thông tư 41/2020/TT-BCT

CIRCULAR

MANAGEMENT OF OPERATION OF TAILINGS RESERVOIRS IN MINERAL EXTRACTION AND PROCESSING

Pursuant to the Government's Decree No. 98/2017/NĐ-CP dated August 18, 2017 on functions, tasks, entitlements and organizational structure of the Ministry of Industry and Trade;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 40/2019/NĐ-CP dated May 13, 2019 amending some Articles of the Decrees elaborating the Law on Environment Protection;

At the request of the Director of the Industrial Safety Techniques and Environment Agency;

The Minister of Industry and Trade promulgates a Circular on management of operation of tailings reservoirs in mineral extraction and processing.

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope

This Circular provides for operation of tailings reservoirs in mineral extraction and processing (except minerals that are coal and mineral used as building materials).

Article 2. Regulated entities

This Circular applies to regulatory authorities, owners, organizations and individuals relevant to operation of tailings reservoirs in mineral extraction and processing (except minerals that are coal and mineral used as building materials) in Vietnam.

Article 3. Definitions

For the purposes of this Circular, the terms below are construed as follows:

1. “owner” is the organization or individual that has ownership of the tailings reservoir defined in Clause 3 of this Article.

2. “tailings” are the materials left over during the processing of minerals in the form of mud, including solid part and liquid part. The solid part is fine grains that remain after useful minerals are obtained from the crude ore. The liquid part is a mixture of wastewater and chemicals that are dissolved after mineral processing.

3. “tailings reservoir” is a system that consists of a reservoir or dump, dam and ancillary works that are designed and built to temporarily or permanently retain tailings in order to protect environmental safety and stability. A tailings reservoir does not necessarily have a dam.

4. “dam” is part of the tailings reservoir that is built of earth, waste earth and rocks, mixture of rock, tailings, concrete, reinforced concrete or other materials.

5. A “large tailings reservoir” is a tailings reservoir with a dam height of at least 15 m or a capacity of at least 30.000 m³.

6. “harmful tailings reservoir” is a tailings reservoir that store tailings having harmful components or expected to have harmful components that exceed the limits on hazardous wastes as per regulations.

7. “displacement monitoring” means the monitoring of spatial displacement of the dam (vertical displacement and horizontal displacement at right angle).

Article 4. Rules for operation of tailings reservoirs

The owner shall follow these rules in operation of the tailings reservoir:

1. Ensure safety throughout the operation of the tailings reservoir; make the best use of the capacity of the tailings reservoir according to approved design.

2. Comply with the approved tailings reservoir procedures and the reservoir inspection plan; frequently examine or record changes that occur during the operation and adjust the operation procedures accordingly.

3. Carry out maintenance and safety monitoring of the tailings reservoir; implementation of the emergency prevention and response; take responsibility for tailings reservoir emergencies.

Chapter II

OPERATION OF TAILINGS RESERVOIRS

Article 5. Procedures for operation of tailings reservoirs

1. The owner shall prepare, approve and organize the implementation of the tailings reservoir procedures in a practical manner and according to examined and approved parameters of the reservoir.

2. The tailings reservoir operation procedures shall include procedures for operation in normal conditions and procedures for operation in case of floods and discovery of emergency warning signs. The operation procedures shall have at least the following contents:

a) Overalls of the mineral processing technology; tailings disposal procedures; basic information about current conditions of the reservoir, dam, safety parameters and operation parameters according to design.

b) Responsibility of reservoir operators; specific instructions on reservoir operations under practical conditions.

c) Frequency and contents of tailings reservoir inspections in order to ensure early detection of emergency warning signs.

d) Identify and assess the risks; prepare emergency response scenario and order of priority of actions accordingly.

e) Regulations on commendation and discipline.

3. The tailings reservoir operation procedures shall be adjusted according to changes to the input conditions of the reservoir, production plan, meteorological, geological, hydrographical forecasts and measurements and have to be updated every at least 02 years.

4. In case the tailings reservoir operation procedures have to be adjusted annually due to increase to inflow of water, the owner shall make the adjustment within the first quarter according to: flow rate of tailings dumped into the reservoir; conditions of the dam; developments of floods and natural disasters; reservoir characteristic curves; tailings reservoir design documents; reservoir safety monitoring results.

Article 6. Maintenance of tailings reservoirs

1. The owner shall maintain the tailings reservoir in accordance with Chapter V of the Government’s Decree No. 46/2015/NĐ-CP dated May 12, 2015 on construction work maintenance and quality control.

2. In addition to the maintenance tasks mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article, the owner shall add the following contents of the tailings reservoir maintenance procedures:

a) Monitoring parameters, techniques and processing of monitoring results: The elements that need monitoring, monitoring procedures, method for analysis and processing data, standards for evaluation through monitoring shall depend on the scale and characteristics of the reservoir;

b) Inspection frequency, method and subjects: specify the items, structures, parts that need inspecting, especially those relevant to the structure of the dam and environmental protection works; inspection equipment, method and contents (inspection with naked eyes, machines, etc.); inspection manner (regular, periodic, irregular, etc.); inspection frequency (times per month, quarter, year, periodic inspection time, etc.). Focus on inspection of parts and structures that are likely to be damaged by natural elements and humans;

c) Time and instructions on periodic replacement of devices: Replacement of metal structures shall depend on their characteristics, structural durability, environmental conditions and design norms; replacement of other installations shall comply with manufacturers’ instructions.

Article 7. Safety monitoring of tailings reservoirs

1. The owner shall develop and install a system for safety monitoring; keep a log of supervision results; issue warnings and take appropriate actions when the supervised parameters exceed the approved values.

2. Safety monitoring contents:

a) Displacement monitoring;

b) In-dam permeability control;

c) Supervision of water level and inflow;

d) Stress monitoring;

e) Monitoring of surrounding areas of the reservoir;

i) Devices serving reservoir operation.

Article 8. Displacement monitoring

1. The owner shall install displacement monitoring systems along the top, shoulder and body of the dam to monitor vertical displacement and horizontal displacement of the dam at right angle.

2. Displacement monitoring is mandatory for large tailings reservoirs and harmful tailings reservoir.

Article 9. In-dam permeability control

1. The owner shall install devices for monitoring saturation curves in the dam body, flow pressure at contact points of materials with different characteristics, in front of and behind the geomembrane, the adjacent area between the cast construction and embankment dam.

2. Leakage rates at the points of leakage on the dam body must be maintained within permissible limits.

Article 10.  Monitoring of water level and inflow

The owner shall:

1. Build a system for monitoring of inflow of wastewater, tailings and natural water to the reservoir; changes in mud—water level in the reservoir; changes in water level in irrigation works; changes in water level in the downstream area of the dam and flood control system.

2. Build a system of markers to measure elevations from the bottom of the reservoir to the permissible elevation along the dam and in the area where water is calm to measure water level in the reservoir.

3. Build markers to indicate water level on the side of the inlets, outlets and channels of draining and water-collecting works to measure water level in the upstream and downstream areas of the reservoir.

Article 11. Stress monitoring

Owners of large tailings reservoirs and harmful tailings reservoirs shall:

1. Build a system for monitoring stress in the body and floor of the dams that are made of concrete or reinforced concrete.

2. Control plastic deformation that occurs in weak grounds and structures under tensile stress.

Article 12. Monitoring surrounding areas of the reservoir

The owner shall:

1. Monitor developments of rocky mountains adjacent to the reservoir to evaluate the risk of landslide into the reservoir and prepare a response plan.

2. Implement measures to limit landslide upon discovery of signs of landslide.

Article 13. Operating devices

1. Electric devices for opening and closing drains and spillways shall have a backup power source. The backup power source shall be inspected before the rainy season and weekly during the rainy season in order to ensure continuous operation of these devices.

2. Large tailings reservoirs and harmful tailings reservoirs shall devices for automatic measurement of parameters that need constant monitoring; apply information technology to management, processing and storage of data; install surveillance cameras to monitor landslide of the reservoir; data shall be transferred to the department responsible for reservoir operation for processing and response in case of emergencies.

Article 14. Development of reservoir database

1. The owner shall develop and maintain the reservoir data based on the results of measurement, monitoring and calculation during reservoir operation.

2. The stored data must be continuous and easy to be accessed to serve technical evaluation, information provision and personnel replacement; easy to be updated and accessed with technology breaking the continuity of data.

3. Reservoir data reports shall be prepared according to Appendix 01 hereof and sent to competent authorities in accordance with Article 17 of this Circular.

Article 15. Emergency prevention and response plans

1. The owner shall prepare, approve and organize the implementation of the emergency prevention and response plan in accordance with instructions in Appendix 02 hereof.

2. The emergency prevention and response plan shall be sent to other response units (if any) for comments before approval. After the plan is approved, the owner shall send it to these units for cooperation in emergency response.

3. The emergency prevention and response plan shall be sent to competent authorities in accordance with Article 17 of this Circular.

Article 16. Reservoir inspection plans

1. The owner shall prepare annual reservoir inspection plans, Including:

a) Regular inspections via analysis and evaluation of data obtained through dame safety monitoring, measurement and field inspection;

b) Ad hoc inspections that are immediately carried out after occurrence of floods, earthquakes, vandalism or detection of damage.

2. Inspection reports shall be prepared according to Appendix 01 hereof and sent to competent authorities in accordance with Article 17 of this Circular.

Article 17. Reporting

1. Reports, plans, inspection and monitoring results relevant to the operation and inspection of a tailings reservoir shall be retained at its owner’s premises until the reservoir ceases to operate and environmental remediation is done.

2. The owner shall annually send the report on data and results of inspection and monitoring of tailings reservoir in Appendix 01 of this Circular in PDF format (photographed from a physical document or electronically signed) and Microsoft Excel format to the Department of Industry and Trade by January 31 and July 31 to an email address provided by Department of Industry and Trade.

3. Owners of large tailings reservoirs and harmful tailings reservoirs shall send the reports mentioned in Clause 2 of this Article to the Department of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Industry and Trade (via Industrial Safety Techniques and Environment Agency - ISEA) to an email address provided by ISEA.

4. In case of an emergency, the owner shall send a report to the competent authorities mentioned in Clause 2 and Clause 3 of this Article within 24 hours after the occurrence of the emergency or report as requested by competent authorities. Within 10 working days from the day on which the emergency is handled, the owner shall submit a report on how the emergency was handled in accordance with the plan for tailings reservoir emergency prevention and response.

Chapter III

IMPLEMENTATION ORGANIZATIONS

Article 18. Responsibilities of ISEA

1. Organize the implementation of this Circular.

2. Carry out inspections and take actions against violations within its jurisdiction.

3. Announce the email address for receiving documents, reports and data about tailings reservoirs in accordance with Clause 3 Article 17 and Clause 6 Article 19 of this Circular.

4. Cooperate with the People’s Committees and Departments of Industry and Trade of provinces in emergency response and recovery.

Article 19. Responsibilities of Departments of Industry and Trade of provinces

1. Organize the implementation of this Circular in their provinces.

2. Carry out inspections and take actions against violations within its jurisdiction or request competent authorities to handle violations against regulations on management and safe operation of tailings reservoirs.

3. Announce the email address for receiving documents, reports and data about tailings reservoirs in accordance with Clause 2 Article 17 of this Circular.

4. Comments on and propose the Regulations on provincial-level cooperation in responding to tailings reservoir emergencies, which may be integrated into the operating regulations of the local commands for natural disaster management, search and rescue.

5. Cooperate in emergency response and recovery as per regulations.

6. Annually prepare and submit consolidated reports on management of local tailings reservoirs according to Appendix 03 in PDF format (photographed from a physical document or electronically signed) and Microsoft Excel format to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (via ISEA) by March 31 to an email address provided by ISEA.

Article 20. Responsibilities of owners

1. Organize the implementation of regulations of law on management and safe operation of tailings reservoirs.

2. In case another organization or individual is assigned or hired by the owner to operate a tailings reservoir, this must be informed to a competent authority and there must be a document specifying the responsibilities of each party for management and safe operation of the tailings reservoir.

Article 21. Transition clauses

1. Owners of tailings reservoirs that are operating or have been suspended before the effective date of this Circular shall implement the regulations of this Circular by December 31, 2021.

2. Owners of tailings reservoirs that have been shut down and are undergoing environmental remediation shall carry out safety monitoring and submit reports in accordance with regulations of law on minerals and environmental safety.

Article 22. Effect

1. This Circular comes into force from February 01, 2021.

2. In case the legislative documents referred to in this Circular are amended or replaced, the newer documents shall apply.

3. Difficulties that arise during the implementation of this Circular should be reported in writing to the Ministry of Industry and Trade for consideration and revision./.