Successful Northern Community Collaboration Waste Management and - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Cameco Corporation

cameco.com May 13, 2016

Camille Pouteaux & Walter Smith

Successful Northern Community Collaboration – Waste Management and Diversion from Uranium Mining and Milling Facilities in Northern Saskatchewan

Environmental Services Liaison & PBN Manager of Training and Community Development

Agenda

• Company Background and Location
• Cameco Waste Management History
• Forming a Partnership with a Northern Community
• Understanding Radiation
• Waste Management at Uranium Mining & Milling Facilities
• Economics of Managing Waste from Remote Northern Cameco

Operations

• Waste Management Activities
• Cameco Success
• Community Success

Cameco Background

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• Cameco is one of the world’s largest uranium producers, providing

about 18% of world uranium production.

• Cameco has four uranium operations in Northern Saskatchewan

including:

• McArthur River and Cigar Lake, the world’s largest high grade

uranium deposits and mines;

• a uranium milling facility at Key Lake, and;
• A mine and mill at Rabbit Lake (Cameco’s longest-running
• peration) which is now moving towards care and maintenance

PBN Background

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• Pinehouse Business North (PBN) is a northern Saskatchewan

Aboriginal-owned and operated company specializing in civil earthworks, labour services and waste management for the mining industry.

• PBN was started in 2007 by the people of Pinehouse Lake to create

wealth, employment & infrastructure for their community.

• The company enjoys preferred supplier status with Cameco and has the

advantage of long-standing relationships with the mining industry in Northern Saskatchewan.

• Building sustainable wealth will have a positive impact within Pinehouse.
• Since its inception, PBN has grossed revenues in excess of $20 million

and currently employs over 125 local people.

• Our goal is to raise the service standard as a Preferred Northern

Contractor, diversify our business portfolio, develop strategic long-term partnerships and lead the way in community owned wealth creation.

Saskatchewan map (Athabasca Basin cut out)

Pinehouse, SK

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Population: 1500 Distance to nearest Cameco facility: 223 Km

Waste Management – A History

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• Two Cameco operations were developed in late 1970s to early 1980s

(Rabbit Lake and Key Lake) and have been in operation since.

• The McArthur River mine began operations in the late 1990s and the Cigar

Lake mine has been in development since the mid 2000s but only recently became fully operational due to past flooding events during development.

• Kitchen/domestic waste is managed appropriately to avoid wildlife

interactions.

• Industrial Waste from Mining and Milling operations was stockpiled on site.
• The issues:

– Everyday industrial waste – that could otherwise be recycled – sits in stockpiles. – Material has to be scanned for radioactivity before leaving site. – Process requires time and resources and creates bottlenecks. – It is time-consuming and costly to manage industrial waste material. – Landfills at sites have limited capacity.

Stockpiling Example

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Stockpiling Example

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Stockpiling Example - Before

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Stockpiles Cleaned Up - After

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Partnering to protect the environment

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• Cameco and PBN faced challenges and found solutions
• Result is improved environmental stewardship and better waste

management practices

• Supporting business development and employment opportunities

in northern Saskatchewan.

Understanding Radiation

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• What is Radiation?

– Any energy traveling through space

• This radioactive release can either be harmful or not:

– Non-ionizing radiation – does not have enough energy to cause damage to living tissue (example WiFi in your home) – Ionizing radiation – has enough energy to cause damage to living tissue

Understanding Radiation

• Background radiation comes from:

Radiation Exposure

• Radiation dose at each of

Cameco’s operations is controlled through well- managed Radiation Protection Programs (RPP)

• Radiation dose measured in

mSv (millisieverts)

• CNSC (Canadian Nuclear Safety

Commission) annual target is < 50 mSv

• Cameco annual target < 20 mSv
• (i.e.) Average exposure of UG

worker at McArthur River is 1.6 mSv

• Average background radiation

in Canada is 2 – 4 mSv

5 10 15 20 25 Surface U/G 0.26 1.6 Average effective radiation dose for workers in 2015

Cameco’s Exposure Limit

Source: 2015 McArthur River Annual Report

Radiation Exposure

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• For Comparison

– Flight Crews typically receive an average exposure of 2-4 mSv/per year. – Dental x-ray exams will provide an average dose of 1.6 mSv – Mammograms will provide an average dose of 2.5 mSv – CT scans will expose the body to many times more radiation than what a nuclear energy worker experiences.  Depends on where the CT scan is conducted and the length of exposure however the dose can range between 2-50 mSv

Waste Management at Uranium Mining and Milling Facilities

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• Cameco follows the ALARA Principle

– As Low As Reasonably Achievable – This is an internationally recognized standard by which radiation control measures are evaluated. – Radiation programs are in place for the protection of all workers.

• Part of ALARA is Zone Control

– Because Cameco’s business is to operate uranium mining and milling facilities, materials will come in contact with radioactive materials on a routine basis. – Zone controls (zone 1-4) have been established at the sites classifying the expected level of radiation exposure within each work area  e.g. The camps or permanent residence facilities are not in contact with any radioactive material, therefore they are classed as zone 1.

Waste Management at Uranium Mining and Milling Facilities

• Waste is categorized in a similar fashion and it is automatically

classed as contaminated if it comes from a zone 2-4. – Non-Contaminated or Domestic Waste (Zone 1) – Contaminated Waste (Zone 2-4)  Note: Zone 2&3 working areas are not normally expected to contain radioactive material.  Zone 4 waste is expected to be radioactive and must be scanned

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Waste Management at Uranium Mining and Milling Facilities

– Cameco scans all items leaving site (zones 2-4) – even though the majority of the zone 2-3 items are expected to be clean. – This is done to ensure the public that material leaving the site is not contaminated. – This applies to all industrial recyclable material.

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Waste Management at Uranium Mining and Milling Facilities

• This additional level of effort for managing waste is unique to the

uranium industry.

• Challenge

– Develop the most cost effective way to collect, scan, clean, prepare, transport and manage all potentially recyclable materials to extend the life of Cameco’s existing landfills and avoid the need for additional landfill space during the life of our operations. The following was evaluated:  Current Recycling Levels and Programs  Transportation Costs to Offsite Recycling Facility  Scanning Bottlenecks  Minimizing Repeated Handling

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Waste Management at Uranium Mining and Milling Facilities

• Solutions

– Create a centralized transfer station area for site employees to bring various industrial recycling materials to be processed. – Partner with a northern community to have dedicated personnel responsible for all aspects of industrial recycling and thus gaining efficiencies. – Provide training for those people. – Bulk up shipments to reduce transportation costs. – Effectively implement program changes within Cameco to support the diversion of as much recyclable material from the landfill as possible.

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Creation of a Transfer Station

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Transportation

• Materials are shipped
• ffsite in bulk shipping

containers to increase the volume diverted from sites and reduce backhaul charges

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Enhanced Recycling Program to try to Improve Diversion ● Cameco sites started recycling like

most industries and focused on common recycled materials such as paper/cardboard

• All sites are at different stages in

the implementation of their enhanced waste management processes.

• The partnership with PBN allows

the sites to collect and manage more recyclable materials by removing the bottleneck in scanning and recyclable shipment preparation.

• Enhanced recycling includes:

lightbulbs, batteries, ink and printer cartridges, waste electronics, kitchen grease, aerosol cans, pallets, tires, scrap metal, HSWDG, mixed blue bin materials (i.e. plastic, tin, glass, paper, cardboard, beverage containers), etc.

Economics of Waste Management at a Uranium Mining or Milling Facility

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• Does the time it take to scan material pay off in returns from

recyclable materials? – No, but it is the most environmentally responsible thing to do and protection of the environment is one of Cameco’s core values.

• Alternative is to landfill recyclable materials.

– Not ideal as limited capacity exists within the current landfills at site. – Constructing a new landfill would be a significant cost.

• Average Estimated Cost to Manage Waste per Volume

– $160/m3 (includes cleaning, scanning, shipment preparation, transportation off site, and related disposal fees) – Estimated cost to construct a new landfill $200/m3

Waste Management at Uranium Mining and Milling Facilities

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• Creating a partnership with Pinehouse Business North (PBN) allows

Cameco to move towards better waste management practices while supporting business development amongst one of our closest northern communities. – PBN assists in removing historical waste as well as managing our routinely generated waste. – Assists with managing:  HSWDG;  Contaminated Waste;  Industrial and Non Industrial Recyclable Materials;  Construction and Demolition waste; and  Demolition of Waste Process Equipment.

PBN Waste Management Activities

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• PBN conducts a variety of waste management activities on site.

These include: – Scanning all recyclable materials that will leave site. – Amalgamating HSWDG into UN-certified drums for shipment offsite. – Removing void spaces from larger process equipment. – Cleaning industrial recyclables items to remove any surface contamination. – Shipment preparation of all recyclable materials to send offsite:  Bailing  Cutting metal pieces to size  Strapping Tires to Pallets  Shrink Wrapping Electronics  Etc.

Scanning all recyclable materials

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Scanning Tires

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Large Scale Waste/Tank Demolition

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Seacan Demolition

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Seacan Demolition

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Potential Radiation Exposure Adds a Level of Complexity to Managing Industrial Waste at Cameco

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• Multiple Powered Air

Purifying Respirators (PAPR) and disposable coveralls required.

• Suit and respirator

change outs adds a lot

• f time/costs to the

management of any radioactive waste product.

Before and After Photos

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Before and After Photos

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PBN Employee Planting Trees in Old Laydown Area

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• Ideal to have a contractor

available to conduct waste management activities and

• ther environmental services
• PBN has capability in waste

management, earthworks construction, and reclamation activities such as tree planting.

• They can be used as a

workforce from beginning stages of clean up to final reclamation of disturbed areas at the operations.

Cameco Success

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• Legacy Waste Volumes

– Cigar Lake – 12,967 m3 – McArthur River – 3,495 m3 – Key Lake – 6,957 m3 – Rabbit Lake – 5,480 m3

• Total Legacy Waste Volume - 28,899 m3
• Total Cleaned Up to Date – 9,181 m3
• Percentage – 31.7%

Cameco Waste Diversion

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0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50% 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Average Hazardous and Non-Hazardous Waste Diversion Rate from Northern SK Cameco Operating Sites

Success - Supporting Community Employment

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• Environmental waste management initiatives on site employ

approximately 30 people yearly.

• Further Cameco contracts offer an additional 60-90 people

employment throughout the year.

Successes in the Community

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• Additional Employment

– 2015 - 125 people working at the peak of the season – Over 70,000 man hours from the community alone

• On average, PBN contributes over half a million dollars annually to

support community initiatives: – Construction of the community hockey rink – Construction of the elders complex

• With support of government and industry, PBN has invested over a

million dollars in training and apprentice programs (2015).

• With continued collaboration and strategic investment, PBN will

continue to be a mechanism for empowering Residents of Saskatchewan's North (RSN) and become an industry leader in waste management.

Questions

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