This presentation will review some of the state-of-the-art methods, including oxygen and hydrogen stable isotopes, 222Radon and trace element geochemical analysis for the assessment of water sources, availability and quality in mining areas. The case studies for copper, bauxite, gold, and uranium mines in South America, Africa and Australia will demonstrate that “conventional” practices would lead to catastrophic outcomes in terms of loss of productivity, social tension and environmental harm. The Iron Quadrangle in the state of Minas Gerais in southeast Brazil (6 % of the world's iron ore production)will be used as an example to assess how the region's predicted development may impact on its water availability and therefore on the region's sustainability. Historical trends of water discharge and precipitation will be analyzed, together with population growth and mine production data, to assess water availability under different population and industry growth scenarios. It will be demonstrated that the most significant limitations of this study are the lack of groundwater level data across the region and the lack of complete and reliable data on surface and groundwater withdrawals. These constraints make it difficult to follow a rigorous approach for the calculation of water scarcity values and indices. It will be shown, however, that temporal discharge trends unequivocally indicate a substantial decrease in water availability, and that the region is already experiencing significant water stress.
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