Geotechnical investigations of dredged overburden at the Syncrude oil sand mine in northern Alberta, Canada

The feasibility of constructing a stable overburden waste dump using hydraulic techniques has been investigated. A joint Alberta Oil Sands Technology and Research Authority - Syncrude field pilot resulted in a total of 25 000 m 3 of overburden being dredged, hydraulically transported in lump form, and deposited in a number of study cells. The geotechnical properties of the deposits were tested in the field and laboratory. The results indicate that the potential exists to hydraulically construct waste dumps with Pleistocene materials. Clearwater Formation clay shale can also be hydraulically transported in lump form but the resulting deposit requires containment. Key words: dredging, overburden, clay lumps, geotechnical testing, case histories, waste dump.