Geoecological Assessment of Aged Tailings of Loparite Ore Enrichment / Environmental Assessment of Recycling of Loparite Ore Tailings

Geotechnical properties and material composition of aged tailings of loparite ore enrichment have been investigated. The heterogeneity of the material composition and contents of valuable components has been established. The average content of loparite in tailings is 1.0%. The effective specific activity of natural radionuclides 226 Ra, 232 Th and 40 K in the studied samples is in the range of 757.23±158.66 Bq/kg. After leaching samples of tailings with distilled water, the concentration of fluorine ions in the water extract significantly exceeded the maximum permissible concentrations for water bodies of commercial fishing importance, as well as for drinking and household use. Phytotesting allowed to determine that the aqueous extracts of enrichment tailings, both the native extract and its dilutions, do not have a significant toxic effect on the growth of higher plants.