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12:44
Watershed Planning within a Quantitative Scenario Analysis Framework
Published on: July 24, 2016
Incorporating environmental costs into long-term open-pit mine planning for sustainable resource optimization
Ali Salehi1, Morteza Osanloo2, Sajjad Afraei3
1Department of Mining Engineering, Amirkabir University of Technology, Tehran, Iran.
Scientific Reports
|May 20, 2026
Summary
This study introduces a new model for open-pit mine planning that integrates environmental costs, leading to more realistic production schedules and improved overall mine net present value (NPV). The model highlights acid mine drainage and greenhouse gas emissions as key environmental cost drivers.
Area of Science:
- Mining Engineering
- Environmental Management
- Operations Research
Background:
- Long-term production planning in open-pit mines must balance resource extraction with environmental protection.
- Current planning methods often lack a systematic framework for quantifying and integrating environmental costs.
- Environmental considerations are crucial for sustainable mining operations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a comprehensive framework for quantifying environmental costs in open-pit mine production planning.
- To propose practical methods for integrating these costs into mine design and planning.
- To create a Mixed-Integer Linear Programming (MILP) model for optimizing production schedules with environmental considerations.
Main Methods:
- Identification and categorization of environmental costs associated with open-pit mining.
- Development of practical quantification methods for identified environmental costs.
- Formulation of a Mixed-Integer Linear Programming (MILP) model integrating environmental costs into the objective function.
- Implementation of the model within a three-dimensional block model framework.
Main Results:
- The proposed MILP model enables the coherent integration of all environmental costs into the production planning process.
- Production schedules and ultimate pit limits derived from the model provide a more realistic representation of mining conditions.
- Directly incorporating environmental costs increased the total mine NPV by approximately 14.87% in the case study compared to conventional models.
- Acid mine drainage (AMD) control and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission costs were identified as the most significant environmental cost components.
Conclusions:
- Integrating environmental costs into the optimization stage of mine planning supports more realistic and sustainability-oriented decision-making.
- The developed MILP model offers a practical tool for enhancing the environmental and economic performance of open-pit mines.
- Addressing key environmental costs like AMD and GHG emissions is critical for improving the economic viability of mining projects.
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