Getting Closure

Host Mike O’Kane explores principles 9, 10, 11, and 12 with Institute Founder Gord McKenna, concluding the three-episode discussion of all 12 landform design principles. 

The pair explain why it’s important to follow every drop of water through the landscape (Principle 9), reclaim a mine progressively (Principle 10), plan for sustainable closure (Principle 11), and share the lessons of both failure and success (Principle 12). 

In emphasizing the importance of providing the best possible landform design advice to practitioners, Mike conjures one of the most famous quotes by Oscar Wilde: “I always pass on good advice. It is the only thing to do with it. It is never of any use to oneself.” The implication of the phrase is that wisdom finds its true value when shared with others, a practice Mike observes is a key objective in speaking with the learned guests who come on the “Getting Closure” podcast.

Host Mike O’Kane once again welcomes LDI founder and chair, Gord McKenna to the show. O’Kane, co-chair of the Institute’s technical advisors, discusses with McKenna four principles that put the “nitty-gritty” of landform design into practice. 

These four principles cover: working at spatial and temporal scales simultaneously (Principle 5); building and reclaiming landforms and landscapes using existing technologies (Principle 6); using a risk-based approach that involves designing for the most likely case while embracing the observational method and adaptive management (Principle 7); and knowing your materials, including their properties, quantities, and locations (Principles 8).

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The 12 Principles of Landform Design

In the first episode of Season 3 of Getting Closure,” host Mike O’Kane sits down with LDI founder and chair, Gord McKenna, to characterize the first four principles of landform design.

O’Kane and McKenna describe what it means to “keep the land in mind” and how to create a vision for reclaimed land, which depends heavily on establishing trust between the mine, shareholders, and Indigenous peoples. They discuss next how to establish “governance” and assembling a multi-disciplinary team with a lead designer.

The conversation turns next to the development of the Design Basis Memorandum, guidance for which the LDI will be releasing this fall. A DBM sets out the vision for a particular project, large or small, and develops the goals, objectives, and design criteria to achieve that vision. Last, they talk about working collaboratively and embracing co-reclamation. Landscapes must be built with users, not for them.

In a preview of Season 3 of Getting Closure, host Mike O’Kane, Co-Chair of the LDI's Technical Advisors and a member of the Board, sits down with LDI Founder and Chair Gord McKenna to discuss why the 12 principles of landform design are so important.

The first episode of the new season will appear the week of August 19. The conversation will focus on the first 4 of the 12 principles.

We all know how gravity works … inherently, we know which way is up. We are also all well versed in our world’s push for renewable energy — so-called green energy. And there is growing discssion in our industry on its capacity to achieve our closure objectives and transform our mined land into a future, or post mining land use, which brings value to rightsholders, stakeholders, and the communities in and around our mine sites.

Our guest for this episode ties these three aspects together. Mark Swinnerton of Green Gravity discuss his insights on alternative land use potential for closed and legacy mines, but also planning for and creating renewable energy throughout the mine life cycle as part of closure planning. Mark’s perspective in this space is wide and varied as a result of the breadth of his incredible experience working in the mining industry for a large mining house, and really understanding how we influence investment in our industry and advance projects.

Lois Boxill is a member of the LDI's Board of Directors for good reason, not the least of which is a unique perspective on how to approach a wide variety of subjects involving mine closure — and her ability to apply ideas and experiences from further afield to the tasks involved in landform design.

Season 2 of Getting Closure continues to explore the principles and people behind responsible mine closure and reclamation, beginning with an interview with a giant in the field, Dr. Andy Robertson.

Getting Closure heads to the Elk Valley in southeastern British Columbia for its first video episode to explore a mine that's already embraced the basics of landform design. Mike talks with John Pumphrey, the president of North Coal, and Robert "Stubby" Williams, the company's First Nations coordinator. They discuss how North Coal has prioritized collaboration, Indigenous and community concerns, and why they chose not to mine a particularly sensitive area. To get the full story, and a better sense of what North Coal is up to, watch the video of the conservation, which is available at the LDI website: https://www.landformdesign.com/pod.html

The first principle of landform design is mine with the end in mind and create a shared vision among the mine, local communities, and Indigenous peoples. In this episode, Mike O'Kane discusses how to turn that principle into practice with the help of Sean Willy, CEO of the Des Nedhe Group in Saskatchewan. Together they examine the value of Indigenous leadership and participation in closure planning, the changing nature of impact benefit agreements, and what true collaboration really looks like.

In Episode 3, Mike O'Kane interviews Corinne Unger, an Australia-based specialist in mine rehabilitation and closure planning who has undertaken research on abandoned mines and post-mining land use around the world and is currently working on her PhD. Their conversation, conducted over Skype between Calgary and Brisbane, covers the importance of good mentors, navigating an industry where women are usually in the minority, and trying to convince mines and regulators to incorporate a social dimension into mine planning.