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Mount Gibson Iron Ltd - Extension Hill Hematite Project
As part of the development of its Extension Hill Hematite deposit, located 50 km south-west of Paynes Find, Mt. Gibson Iron engaged Rockwater to locate and develop groundwater supplies in bedrock strata near the deposit to be used for dust-suppression and camp uses. An exploration programme comprising review of the local hydrogeology, drilling of holes, bore construction, and test pumping was undertaken. Successful bores were sited in fractured banded iron formation and the required water supply was obtained.
Gindalbie Metals Ltd - Karara Iron Ore Project
Gindalbie Metals proposes to mine iron ore from a number of banded iron-formation (BIF) ridges in the Mt Karara–Blue Hills region. It is estimated that at least 6 GL/a (190 L/s) of water will be required for road and plant construction, ore processing, dust suppression, and to supply water for drilling and a desalination plant. Water with a low salinity (<3,000 mg/L total dissolved solids (TDS)) is preferred, as this minimises the cost of desalination, reduces the need for washing salt from the ore, and reduces the possibility of damage caused by over-spraying of water on haul roads and tracks.
Rockwater was engaged by Gindalbie to locate and develop the groundwater supply needed to support the proposed mining operations at Karara. A drilling programme is currently underway at three main source areas: a Jurassic sandstone aquifer in the Perth Basin and Archaean fractured bedrock and Tertiary palaeochannel aquifers on the Yilgarn Craton. Operations to date comprise the drilling of exploration holes and production bores in fractured BIF at Mt Karara and in fractured rock and palaeochannel sediments up to 30 km from Mt Karara.
Windimurra Vanadium Ltd –Vanadium Project
The Windimurra Vanadium Project is located about 80 km east-south-east of Mt Magnet, in the lower Murchison Region of Western Australia. The project’s minesite and processing facilities are currently undergoing redevelopment, following a four year closure of the site. The water demand for the project, required for dust suppression, ore processing and mining camp purposes is predicted to be about 4 GL/annum. Water will be sourced from a borefield installed previously under Rockwater’s supervision, in the vicinity of the minesite and camp. Rockwater conducted a borefield remediation programme to assess the current condition of the borefield and estimate the available water supply. All bores were camera inspected using a down-hole camera and test-pumped; and selected bores underwent remediation work.
Intrepid Mines Ltd - Paulens Gold Mine
Intrepid Mines operates the Paulsens Gold Mine which is located in Western Australia’s Ashburton Mineral Field, located about 150 km southeast of Onslow. Historically, the water supply for mine operations has been met primarily by groundwater obtained from dewatering operations. However, the long-term water supply provided from dewatering has decreased and additional supplies were required for projected water demands. Rockwater was engaged to locate and develop additional groundwater supplies near the mine. Based on inspection of aerial photographs, a review of the local hydrogeology, and results from ground proton magnetic geophysical surveys, a drilling and test pumping programme was undertaken with successful bores intersecting dolerite dykes, quartz veins, and a faulted sandstone unit.
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Busselton Water and Aqwest Deep Bores
Rockwater has been involved for many years with providing the Busselton/Bunbury area with a sustainable water supply from the Leederville and Yarragadee aquifers. Water supplies are obtained from production bores screened at up to 1000 m depth and yielding up to 20 L/s. Rockwater, in its role as groundwater consultant to the local water boards, provides advice on drilling locations, bore design and construction, aquifer testing, resource management, operating strategies, and groundwater monitoring and sampling. In addition, Rockwater provides drilling supervision, down-hole geophysical logging services, and ongoing data assessment and reporting to the regulatory authorities. Rockwater was the principal consultant responsible for the adoption and installation of an innovative ultra violet (UV) water treatment system at Busselton. |
 Busselton UV water treatment system |
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Kimberley Diamond Company - Ellendale 4 and 9 Mines
Located in the West Kimberley, Rockwater was involved in the design and installation of a major production borefield at the Ellendale Diamond Project. Following a hydrogeological evaluation, exploration drill sites were selected and a test drilling programme implemented to define the groundwater source and identify the best locations for production bores. The production bores were constructed and tested under the supervision of Rockwater personnel, and the results reported in a format suitable for submission to the relevant regulatory authorities. The borefield has an annual capacity of almost 700,000 m3.
Iluka Resources - Eneabba Mineral Sands
Water supply investigations have been carried out by Rockwater for Eneabba Mineral Sands to develop a groundwater supply now capable of producing about 21,000,000 m3/yr from both shallow (<210 m depth) and deep bores. The water is utilised for mining and ore concentration. Rockwater has been responsible for obtaining groundwater exploration licences, bore design, preparation of drilling tenders and contract specifications, and general project management relating to groundwater exploration and drilling. Drilling supervision has included lithological logging, down-hole geophysical logging, final bore construction design, and aquifer testing. Rockwater provides ongoing consulting services to Iluka Resources Ltd, including preparation of annual regulatory monitoring reports and borefield maintenance. Video logging techniques have been used in bore restoration programmes at the mine to extend the operational life of the production bores, thereby reducing the necessity to replace expensive deep bores.
Norilsk Nickel - Black Swan Nickel Mine
Rockwater was engaged to locate additional sources of low-salinity (<50,000 mg/L TDS) and high-salinity water to support an increase in ore through-put at the Black Swan Nickel Mine, located approximately 80 km north-east of Kalgoorlie. Low-salinity groundwater is particularly scarce in the area, which is close to a saline palaeodrainage. Building on previous investigations by Rockwater, a number of exploration sites were identified and tested. Production bores were successfully constructed at a number of the sites and the required water supply was obtained.
Tropical Timber Plantation Ltd - Beagle Bay
The Beagle Bay tropical timber project is located in the Kimberley in an area where a number of environmentally sensitive springs and wetlands have been identified. Rockwater was contracted to develop a drilling and aquifer testing programme, the results of which were used together with groundwater modelling to determine the availability of and potential impact of pumping the 4.5 to 7.1 GL/annum required for development of the plantation. | |
