Tech Innovators Respond to Call by Investors, Mining Leaders, and Communities for Tailings Safety
7 November, 2022
RESOLVE, a Washington, DC based international non-governmental organization (NGO) known for its innovative solutions to environmental and health challenges and Insight Terra, a London based start-up providing an environmental and infrastructure risk management platform and solutions, have formed a strategic partnership to deliver an end-to-end environmental and social risk management solution for the mining industry. The solution combines satellite and earth observation coupled with ground sensors to independently monitor the highest risk tailings dams, public or privately owned.
The innovation integrates Insight Terra’s leading mine product, Tailings Insight with RESOLVE’s TrailGuard AI to create a sustainable monitoring, management, and mitigation solution for mining operations of all types and sizes.
Tailings Insight is built on Insight Terra’s award-winning Insight Platform and is now deployed with a number of global mining companies to monitor risks posed by tailings dams. The platform includes a cloud-based IoT data management system, satellite connectivity, and earth observation data.
A unique, new feature is RESOLVE’s TrailGuard AI, a cryptic camera-alert system with embedded AI customized for mining operations. This monitoring technology has proven effective for detecting poaching and intruders and now serves other environmental needs by running detectors on-the-edge to prevent illegal logging and human-wildlife conflict.
TrailGuard AI is a product of WildTech, a conservation technology start-up launched by RESOLVE.
The partnership addresses the urgent call by the Church of England (COE) and others for better monitoring of risks from tailings dams and solutions to prevent environmental hazards.[1] Our combined solution is aligned with the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM) promulgated in 2020 by the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) and Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). The GISTM requires mines with high-
risk tailings facilities, both active and closed, to comply by August 2023, less than a year away. This solution meets that timeline.
RESOLVE’s new start-up, Regeneration—a social purpose enterprise that uses the re-mining and processing of waste from legacy mine sites to restore natural environments and help communities realize better closure results—will support this effort by partnering with industry and government to test this solution at re-mined sites and de-risk closed sites.
The leadership of both organizations recognizes that the path to a clean energy transition requires more minerals, and our partnership is designed to help bring them to market safely and sustainably. We will collaborate to scale additional innovative technologies aligned with this objective[2].
RESOLVE and Insight Terra partner with Inmarsat, the leading global mobile satellite communications provider, in its ELEVATE global IoT ecosystem.
Quotes
Insight Terra co-founder and CEO, Alastair Bovim, stated: “The need for reliable, real-time monitoring of mine tailings storage facilities could not be greater in light of yet another catastrophic and deadly failure in South Africa in September this year. Protecting people, and the planet, is our mission at Insight Terra. In partnership with RESOLVE, we will work closely with mine operators, investors, and regulators to advance this comprehensive mine monitoring solution. The powerful combination of satellite connectivity, earth observation data, real-time IoT, and valuable ground truth sensors and data, goes far toward achieving this collective goal.”
RESOLVE President and Regeneration Founder and CEO Stephen D’Esposito, said: “The tailings challenge is daunting and requires a range of engineering, social, and environmental solutions. We’ve identified two innovations that can help: re-mining tailings to restore sites and innovative, AI-enabled monitoring. With Regeneration’s re-mining solution, tailings waste is turned into a resource. By coupling Tailings Insight with TrailGuard AI we achieve safer, more sustainable closure outcomes. This is a double win for the climate and communities.”
WildTech’s CEO Eric Dinerstein added: “Using our technology, AI-enabled monitoring becomes a force multiplier—whether the issue is tailings, poaching, illegal logging, or illegal fishing the challenge is the same, how to get trained “eyes” on the problem at scale and within budget. We can train our solution to see and interpret. The partnership with Insight Terra extends our reach and impact.”
