Has the design for the tailings management area (disposal site) been evaluated elsewhere?
All components of the tailings facility proposed by Nicolet Minerals Company (NMC) have been used successfully in other facilities. The laws and regulations in Wisconsin have compelled NMC to propose one of the most highly-engineered mine tailings facilities. However, if the Department’s review determines that there is a reasonable certainty that the facility design will result in a violation of the groundwater quality standards, the Department would either recommend revisions to or denial of the proposal. The Department believes that a thorough case-by-case review of any proposed design is necessary, because a design that works elsewhere is not necessarily suitable for the environment of northern Wisconsin.
