The Fate of Entrained Hydrocarbon Materials in the McClean Lake Operation Mill Tailings

Under the oxidizing conditions of the McClean Lake Tailings Management Facility (TMF) hydrocarbons entrained on the surface of tailings material from mill processes are gradually converted to soluble bicarbonate ion. This has been observed to be a process occurring over approximately three years likely encouraged by the presence of a microbiological community within the tailings mass and in the water column. A recent tailings sampling campaign has provided evidence that bicarbonate ion is participating in the conversion of gypsum to calcite. In older tailings, equilibrium with calcite appears to be controlling the terminal bicarbonate ion concentration.