Mining Waste Treatment: Chinese iron city adopts mine production, environmental protection

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Turning to northeast China. Benxi, a city in Liaoning province known for mining and steel production, has suffered from resource depletion, pollution and inefficiency. Recently, authorities turned to experts from outside the city to address the issues at local mines. CGTN's Feng Yilei has the details.

Unearthed from the ground, crushed, screened, impurities removed. This powdery iron ore will soon fuel the nation's burgeoning heavy industries. But at Dabeishan Iron Ore Mine in China's old industrial base at Benxi, operational defects have long hindered sustainable growth.

QIN FENGXIN, MINE MANAGER DABEISHAN IRON MINE "Our old way of mining was very inefficient. The recovery rate was only 40 to 50 percent, which is a huge waste of resources. And it would affect our surrounding facilities."

It was in such plight that the mine sought help from academic institutes. Now as they welcome experts from Northeastern University to set up the first work station on the mine, changes are underway.

FENG YILEI BENXI, LIAONING PROVINCE "I'm now standing on one of the mine's collapsed areas. Before being properly filled it used to be a huge pit left by years of mining. And many of the pits like these can be dangerous to people and hazardous to the environment."

Thanks to expert advice on filling the collapsed cave in the ground with dried tailings, they're no longer a threat. Safety is upheld while also getting rid of stacked excess tailings and adding greenery to the mine. And production efficiency has been greatly improved, says the professor in charge of the expert work station.

PROFESSOR REN FENGYU NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY "We introduced new mining methods like zoned sublevel caving and induced caving on this relatively small mine. Under scientific planning, we can make most of the minable ore, thus minimizing the collapse-prone area."

To ensure proper application of these world-leading research achievements, Ren's team carries on with round-the-clock monitoring and studies at the station. And their own research projects have also benefited from it.

PROFESSOR REN FENGYU NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY "Working at Dabeishan Mine has greatly improved our calculation accuracy of collapses. We keep perfecting our model in practice. And the mine gives us funding on big projects like overground facilities protection, which is mutually beneficial for us both."

And it's not just Dabeishan Mine. Now, over 20 expert work stations function as the "external brain" for various enterprises in Benxi. And authorities bridging the local industries with academia, say they will continue to develop this strong intellectual support in urban environmental governance and industrial upgrades.

ZHAO SHIYU, HUMAN RESOURCES DIRECTOR ORGANIZATIONAL DEPT. OF CPC BENXI MUNICIPAL COMMITTEE "We realize that enterprises should take the leading role as they know best what kinds of expertise they need. So government chooses to step back to provide services and encouragement for them to guarantee long-term collaboration."

The progress made in Benxi sets an example for other mines facing similar problems in many of the resource-depleted cities across China. And experts say their experience will also help push forward projects, especially those along the Belt and Road, to make significant breakthroughs in efficient and sustainable production. Feng Yilei, CGTN, Benxi, Liaoning Province.