1. Work package list

2. Summary

This project aims to:

• develop and adapt geological, mineralogical, geophysical, geochemical and data-processing tools and models to characterize the mineral deposits of the Urals and identify criteria (favourable zones) permitting their exploration and development;
• develop and adapt mineralogical, geophysical, chemical and data-processing tools to characterize the environments polluted by mining operations and determine the criteria for identifying sensitive zones; establish a simple method to inventory polluted environments (soil, rivers, etc.); contribute to diminishing environmental impact;
• develop tools permitting progress in the legislative aspect on the mining sector and the protection of natural resources;
• structure and disseminate the information in order to open up an isolated region and guarantee its promotion both nationally and internationally.

The project is aimed at creating a dynamism that will continue far beyond the three-year period. The project has four aspects distributed in eight WP, all focused on a multidisciplinary approach to the non-ferrous metals mineral resources sector of the Urals.

The first concerns the resource itself (WP1, WP2 and WP3): how to explore it, how to characterize it, how to optimize its processing, how to find alternative resources. The selected approach will range from the regional scale to the local scale. The tools employed will vary according to the scale selected. The team working on this project has been formed with a concern for complementarity, while drawing on local forces.

The second aspect concerns an analysis of the environmental impacts arising from the development of the resource (WP4, WP5): how to characterize it, how to measure its impact on sensitive zones, how to alleviate its effects, by modifying the processing chain. The selected approach derives from that employed in WP1 and WP3. It will benefit from the results of the previous work packages (e.g. by defining a type of pollution connected with a type of ore). This approach demands the monitoring of several pilot sites. A transfer of expertise will take place between the European and Russian teams.

A complementarity exists between the GIS-Mineral resources (WP3) and GIS-Environmental constraints (WP4). A great deal of information will be common to both, but in addition, the crossing of the data (planned in WP6) between the two will help identify zones with a high mining potential and a low environmental risk, which will be the priority zones for research and exploration and priority targets for regional development..

The third aspect is focused on advancing mining law and environmental protection (WP7) by providing the lawmakers with factual details.

The final aspect (WP8) aims to structure and disseminate the information among the scientific community, as well as industrial and political circles, in order to open up the field to scientists isolated in the Urals by providing them with appropriate tools, and to urge industrialists to invest in the mining sector.

For the two main areas to be investigated, namely "resource" and "environment", we have selected two approaches. The first consists in examining the objects, characterizing them, understanding the processes involved, and developing models. The second consists in processing the existing information and the data acquired by the project via GIS databases so as to produce thematic maps and generate new data by crossing the information.

The study and characterization of the resource has obvious implications on the study and characterization of the pollution because the tools, in most cases, are the same, but above all, because the characteristics of pollution are associated with the characteristics of the resource (pollutant). The approaches and skills of the parties involved are hence complementary.

At all levels, the project will demonstrate a symbiosis between the different sections so as to guarantee its success.

WP0 - Project coordination will deal with the overall management tasks of the project: reporting (technical meetings, Steering Committee, financial and technical reports), evaluation (submission of official documents to the project leader and WP coordinators), quality control (quality control manual, progress meeting), costs (cost control), deadlines, and contacts with the EU officer in charge of the project.

WP1 - New geological concepts for mineral exploration in the South Urals will involve studying the mineral deposits and their environment in order to understand the complex processes leading to the concentration of metallic minerals in the Urals crust. This knowledge will be used to launch a second phase to define metallogenically fertile regions, i.e. zones of higher mineral potential. Selected world-class mineral deposits need to be studied in detail to fully understand the parameters controlling the localized development of the deposits. Based on a conventional geological approach, this WP will involve detailed petrological and mineralogical studies using state-of-the-art geochemical tools, including isotope and trace-element chemistry together with fluid-inclusion studies. This will lead to a predictive model for the location of VMS deposits. The environment of other types of deposits, such as porphyry copper or PGE-enriched deposits, will also be studied, focusing on environments where magmatic sulphides have been identified. These currently unexploited resources in the region may offer future alternative raw materials for the metal industry of the Urals.

WP2 - Application of new geophysical and geochemical technology is complementary to WP1. It aims to interpret the various geological, geophysical and geochemical data for the VMS deposits on a regional scale using multi-dimensional analysis to interpret and understand large-scale structures around the deposits in order to define fractures and fluid-conduit systems related to the emplacement of the deposits. This will lead to the definition of zones of enhanced mineral potential. In a second stage, this approach will be used at the more detailed deposit scale where extensions to currently known deposits may yet be defined. The use of down-hole EM is proposed as a tool that may aid the discovery of extensions to known orebodies. This newly developed technique has never been tested in this kind of environment, although it has already proved its efficiency in a less favorable context.

A new geochemical approach, which consists in analysing mercury in soil and soil gas using a portable flameless atomic absorption spectrometer, will also be tested. Mercury in other contexts appears to be a suitable pathfinder element for mineral exploration and for locating hidden VMS deposits. This method, never tested in Urals, will be adapted to the specificity of the sites.

WP3 - GIS-Mineral potential will synthesize and validate existing mineral, geological and geophysical data and integrate the new data acquired under WP1 and WP2. This collection of ranked data will be used to enhance our knowledge of the regional metallogeny and will permit computerized treatments aiming at the definition of zones with a high mineral potential. The deliverable will comprise thematic maps, including prospectivity maps. This WP will require to obtain permission from various public institutions to use data which do not directly belong to the project participants.

WP 4 - Control of environmental impacts will aim to understand the scope of the current environmental threat by in-situ measurement and modelling of the processes that may result in the liberation and migration of heavy metals and other pollutants into the biosphere. This will result in a detailed assessment of the impact of mining and related activities on the environment. The source of the pollutants will be characterized in detail, and the possible pathways (vectors) and sinks (concentrators) of the pollutants will be identified. This package will benefit from the analytical tools and geological information developed in WP1 and WP2. A large part of WP4 will be devoted to the monitoring of selected sites considered representative of the problem. An approach will be developed to help make a rapid diagnosis of the polluted sites, possibly through mapping by remote methods such as satellite-borne or airborne spectrometry.

WP5 - GIS-Environmental constraints aims at defining and assessing the risk and at developing a risk management tool through identifying both the potential source of pollution and the sensitive area. Four domains will be identified in a GIS system; two concern the delimitation of sensitive zones (population centres and natural zones) and two concern the pollution (potential sources and vectors). The data will be collected (from different public and semi-public organizations), validated, and digitized, and then stored and organized into different information levels. Data will then be plotted as thematic maps useful for monitoring and planning. Remote-sensing tools will be essential.

WP6 - GIS-Mineral potential and Environmental constraints. Integrating the GIS-Mineral potential and the GIS-Environmental constraints will enable a better ranking of the target areas for mining development in the South Urals. The potential effects that mining operations can have on the environment will be predicted for each potential site, taking into consideration the existing effects of present mining.

WP7 - Legislative aspects aims to comparing West European and Russian legislation in order to:

• identify and analyse current regulations concerning the management of mining activity impacts;
• establish their differences and similarities;
• consider policies relative to the mining environment, both public (regulatory constraints, contractual policies, financial and technical aids, etc.) and private (mining company policies) in order to assess the possibility of incorporating environmental requirements in a sustainable development of economic activities.

This will help the Sverdlovsk region (Ekaterinburg) in drafting legislation for the protection of the mining environment and the use of mine waste (environmental protection law for industry, regulations and mechanisms for implementing the laws, etc.). This comparative study will help to bring the regulations of Western and Eastern Europe more into line with one another, if not harmonize European legislation in this matter, as well as show how the West European model can be adapted to the Russian situation.

WP8 Optimizing the information will be aimed at making the data acquired during the project accessible for the many different groups of specialists who will use the results. Key non-specialists, such as regional planners and politicians, will also need to be able to use and assess the data sets. At the end of the project, a final technology-transfer workshop will be held to disseminate the project results to the various interested parties.