The first deadline for tighter standards in the tailings field was reached in August 2023, reflecting much progress and lessons learned.
Launched in August 2020, the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM) set a three-year deadline for tailings storage facilities (TSFs) for sites with the two highest potential consequences for failure. The standards demand a heightened level of due diligence and require specialists in tailings design, monitoring and management to deepen and broaden skills and capabilities in this engineering field.
The learning curve precipitated by the new GISTM standards has affected not just consulting engineers and their clients, but also government regulators and third-party operators managing tailings facilities. This has led to improvements in best practices and, importantly, to higher minimum standards that are more broadly applied.
