TREVOSE, Pa. — Anglo American, one of the world's largest mining companies, has selected GE’s Advanced Biological Metals Removal Process (ABMet) technology to remove nitrate and selenium from wastewater discharge at its Peace River Coal Trend Mine in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, Canada, according to a press release.
The project will represent the first installation of ABMet in Canada, noted the release.
The coal mine has been operating since 2006, and new regulations prompted Anglo American to build a new wastewater treatment plant to remove nitrate and selenium in the wastewater, the release reported.
Currently under construction, the new facility is turnkey, providing a flexible solution for heavy metal removal, continued the release, and by using GE’s ABMet technology, Anglo American will meet British Columbia’s stringent standards for selenium and nutrient discharge limits.
According to the release, ABMet is a patented biological water treatment system that uses naturally occurring microbes to reduce the amounts of selenium and other metals that can escape in discharge waters from coal mines and power plants.