HABES — DUMP MANAGEMENT

Covering and greening the potash tailings pile at Sondershausen by HABES GmbH

HABES - Gesellschaft für Haldenbewirtschaftung mbH owns the potash tailings pile in Sondershausen, for which it is providing a vegetative cap.

Some 24 million m³ of residue from earlier potash fertiliser production were deposited on the tailings pile at Sondershausen by the middle of 1991. This residue comprises ca. 70 % salt and 30 % sulphate minerals. Rainwater seeps through the body of the tailings and dissolves the salts, which then enter the soil and groundwater as saline leachate. Covering and then greening the tailings pile reduces considerably the amount of salty water leaking into the environment.

The process involves capping the pile with two layers of suitable mineral material. The first helps to stabilise the body of the tailings pile geomechanically, as well as shaping it and blending it into the surrounding landscape. Water balance is controlled in the second layer, which is also used for recultivation. Some 25,000 trees and shrubs have been planted here so far.

Recultivation of the tailings pile is beneficial to the environment. If we are to complete the job, we will continue to need suitable mineral waste. You can find information about allocation values, admissible types of waste and other details about acceptance and reprocessing by clicking on the menu options below.