Evaluation and testing of soil amendments for mine covers in cold regions

萨斯喀彻温大学和Profile Products之间的联盟伙伴关系旨在评估和测试寒冷地区矿井覆盖物的土壤改良剂。矿井覆盖层对矿井关闭至关重要，因为建造的斜坡储存和释放水到环境中，并防止水和氧气进入废石和尾矿。我们将测试Profile Products生产的一些新的土壤改良剂，这是在受控的、寒冷的实验室条件下首次对矿井覆盖层的土壤改良剂进行测试。对加拿大来说，对矿区覆盖层土壤改良剂的这种评价和测试是一个具有经济和环境意义的重要课题。我们估计，在今后10-20年中，地雷覆盖物及其生命周期的“需求”约为2，500万美元，“风险”约为5亿美元。该项目将测试一些旨在刺激植被生长和改善已建矿井覆盖层水文功能的修正措施。 项目完成后，Profile Products将投资以推动加拿大的成果。这项工作将持续一年，并导致一名博士后研究员和两名研究技术人员的培训。公平，多样性和包容性交织在培训计划中，McDonnell在他的实验室中拥有异常强大的多样性记录，女性占54%（女性参与率为28%），来自加拿大，巴西，中国，澳大利亚，墨西哥，美国，中国和英国的多元化国际成员和种族多样性。 他在2016年发表在《科学》杂志上的一篇题为《构建一个强大的团队》的论文中描述了他为实现卓越研究而建立的团队目标，这就是思想、性别、背景和种族的多样性。McDonnell访问了安大略的Six Nations First Nation，并与Kineepik Metis Local的执行董事V. Natomagan先生进行了交谈，他领导了Cameco-all的第一民族参与，目的是用第一民族工人填补该项目的一个技术人员职位。

This Alliance partnership between the University of Saskatchewan and Profile Products is designed to evaluate and test soil amendments for mine covers in cold regions. Mine covers are crucial to mine closure where constructed slopes store and release water to the environment and prevent water and oxygen ingress into waste rock and mine tailings. We will test a number of new soil amendments produced by Profile Products-the first such testing of soil amendments on mine covers in controlled, cold, laboratory conditions. Such evaluation and testing of soil amendments for mine covers is an economically and environmentally important topic to Canada. We estimate that for mine covers and their life-cycle represent about $25 million in "demand" and ~$500 million in "risks" exist in the next 10-20 years. This project will test a number of amendments designed to stimulate vegetation growth and improve hydrological functioning of created mine covers. Following the project's completion, Profile Products will invest to advance the results in Canada. The work will last for one year and result in the training of one Postdoctoral Fellow and two Research Technicians. Equity, diversity and inclusion are interwoven into the training plan and McDonnell has an unusually strong track record of diversity in his lab with 54% females (in a field of 28% female participation overall) and diverse international membership and ethnic diversity from Canada, Brazil, China, Australia, Mexico, USA, China and the UK. Diversity of ideas, genders, backgrounds and ethnicity is his goal for team building for research excellence-described in his 2016 paper in Science magazine titled "Orchestrating a Powerful Group". McDonnell has visited the Six Nations First Nation in Ontario and spoken with Mr. V. Natomagan, Executive Director at Kineepik Metis Local who heads the First Nations engagement for Cameco-all with an aim of filling one of the technician positions on this project with a First Nations worker.