Traditionally closure has been seen by the Resource sector solely as a green or an environmental issue, focused primarily on the requirement to rehabilitate the site following cessation of production activities. In addition to operational, maintenance and production aspects of processing plant design, future design teams will need to take a more holistic view and consider an increasing number of sustainability issues including safety in design and cleaner production as well as closure itself._x000D_
Sustainability principles being adopted by industry such as the Minerals Council of Australia's Enduring Value Framework are now broadening our understanding of closure._x000D_
While issues around the closure of tailings dams and associated infrastructure have been widely studied, few investigations have looked closely at the implications of closure on the design of minerals processing plants. It is likely that design teams may be able to make a significant contribution to meeting industry objectives by adopting innovative designs which, in addition to meeting production objectives, deliver sustainable and cost effective plant closure outcomes._x000D_
This presentation explores the opportunity for innovative design of mineral processing plants through the assessment of alternative closure objectives. This assessment specifically looks at current industry standards and statutory requirements, as well as potential risks and opportunities associated with each objective. Alternative design strategies to meet these objectives are discussed._x000D_
FORMAL CITATION:Kaiser, C F, Murphy, D P and Dewhirst, R F, 2006. Plant design for closure, in Proceedings Metallurgical Plant Design and Operating Strategies 2006, pp 160-174 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).