FAQ

‘Wings’ project draws its name from the metaphor of wings, which symbolize the country’s aspiration for economic flight. The project itself will act as a catalyst for the takeoff of Namibian economy, allowing it to soar to new heights of development and prosperity. Furthermore, ‘Wings’ convey the idea that the project will inspire and uplift the Namibian people. It will create jobs and spur economic growth, ultimately building a brighter future for the nation.

As there are no blasting, excavations or any heavy machinery on the mine, the mining operation is very quiet.

The proposed mining method, In-situ Recovery (ISR), eliminates the possibility of radioactive dust generation at the mine site. There are no dry evaporation ponds in the ISR mining either. In-Situ Recovery makes use of wells/boreholes only, there is no dust, since the solutions move in a circuit-controlled pipes system. The ground surface is not disturbed at all and there is minimal rehabilitation needed once the mining is stopped.

Very weak solutions are used in ISR mining (about 5g/liter or 0.5%). The acidity index (pH) is maintained between level of 2-4, which corresponds to red wine, lemon and bananas acidity.

Each injection well and each extraction well is fitted with a digital flowmeter monitor that informs the control room of the following: flow rate, acid content and in the case of an extraction well, flow rate and uranium content.

The flow rate will immediately inform the control room of any fault. Operations on that line are stopped and repairs are done immediately.

This risk is very low as the achieved to date technical level of production and the organization of work in accordance with international safety standards allows to ensure control over any movement of solutions at all stages of production.

• Casing condition control is carried out from the beginning of well construction, and a special test to check casing integrity is provided during acceptance for operation readiness.
• During operation, wells are checked for leakage by geophysical survey methods. The ISR wellfield area is surrounded by many strategically placed observation/monitoring wells through which potential leakage is monitored both in the same aquifer where mining is taking place, upper aquifer and lower aquifer. Broken casings are immediately repaired.
• During decommissioning, the restoration of groundwater to its initial hydrogeological baseline conditions is performed and the wells are liquidated.

Radioactivity cannot be detected through the human senses. That is why it is important to monitor its level by means of special tests, especially if the natural radioactivity affects water resources.

Water with high natural concentrations of radionuclides content cannot be used for any purposes if it’s above the NORM set by the World Health Organization (WHO). Therefore, for safe use of water resources it is necessary to determine the zones/distribution of high natural concentrations of radionuclides in underground water. Based on these data, safe wells and boreholes can be defined as part of the Integrated Water Resource Management Plan of Namibia.  Continuous control of the underground water quality should be imposed with a strict procedure of water intake from the acceptable boreholes. It is worth noting that, when ISR mining activities have ceased and groundwater restoration has been completed, the concentration of radionuclides does not exceed baseline concentration at that given mining area.  

Headspring collected water samples from a total of 249 boreholes from 2021, 2022, and 2023 respectively. Of this a total of 42 water samples (16.9%) were collected from Headspring exploration hydrogeological boreholes and a total of 207 water samples (83.1%) were collected from farmers’ boreholes within the respective EPLs.

• Alpha activity concentration for farmers’ boreholes ranges from 0.010 to 0.285 Bq/kg.
• Alpha activity concentration for exploration hydrogeological boreholes ranges from 0.05 to 172.90 Bq/kg.
• WHO guidelines for drinking water quality specify a screening value for total alpha activity concentration of 0.5 Bq/kg.

– 28 farmers’ boreholes (14% of the total) exceeded this screening value.

– 36 exploration hydrogeological boreholes (86% of the total) exceeded this screening value.

• Beta activity for farmers’ boreholes ranges from 0.280 to 1.880 Bq/kg.
• Beta activity for exploration hydrogeological boreholes ranges from 0.73 to 31.02 Bq/kg.
• WHO guidelines for drinking water quality screening values for total Beta activity is 1.0 Bq/kg.

– 63 farmers’ boreholes (30% of the total) exceeded this screening value.

– 36 exploration hydrogeological boreholes (86% of the total) exceeded this screening value.

• The activity concentration of radionuclides in underground water can be influenced by a range of factors such as the type and composition of the geological formations (uranium deposits) through which groundwater flows and geochemical processes.
• Elevated radionuclides concentration is a result of natural radioactive decay of uranium mineralization, meaning uranium deposits will continue to be the significant source of exposure for billions of years .
• The comparison of the alpha and beta activity levels, and the radionuclides concentrations with WHO guidelines underscores the need for ongoing monitoring and rigorous control measures to protect groundwater resources and public health.
• The high incidence of boreholes exceeding WHO screening values necessitates the implementation of mitigation measures to address the high natural concentration of radionuclides and ensure safe drinking water standards are met.
• To support decision making, more comprehensive studies are necessary to quantify the potential radiological health risks.

Uranium as a  source of exposure, can be removed from the aquifer during ISR mining..

Many uranium deposits are in water-quality aquifers, but uranium creates a radionuclide areal around itself.

Preliminary water analyses show that water in some farmers irrigation wells located far from deposit are naturally contaminated by radioactive decay products and unsuitable for drinking, household use, agriculture and technical water supply. However, to understand the entire picture of radionuclide distribution a full study must be conducted.

We should also keep in mind that when irrigating with such water, radionuclides accumulate in plants. Consumption of such products may be harmful to the health of the local population.

• Hydrogeological studies demonstrated that overall groundwater flow velocity of Stampriet aquifer is in the range of 1-3 m per year.
• Zone of depression prevents excursions of mine solution.
• Capture zones of boreholes in Leonardville may potentially intercept solutions over 500 to 1000 years, already diluted by the neutral underground water environment.
• Natural attenuation of aquifer occur within 10 years after mining will be stopped.

Naturally, the radionuclides level will be high (in areas of the ore body), therefore spontaneously, the underground water within the mine area will be unsuitable for water supply.

However, mine site will covers only 1.5% of the Stampriet basin and it is fully isolated from the surrounding environment. Very low speed of groundwater provide safety to surrounding underground water and a circuit controlled circulation of the mine solution during mining.

Aquifer (areas of mine polygons) will be restored to its original composition and uranium as a contaminant will be removed.

Yes. Water must be restored to original composition, benchmarking initially analyzed water samples (baseline) before mining commence. The specific restoration method will be selected depending on pilot test plant/mining results and ISR mining method (acid, alkaline or other).

Yes, the good example is the water well No. 4245 near Zarechnoye operating ISR uranium mine, which is used for the campsite potable and household water supply in the South of Kazakhstan.

The distance from water supply well to ISR operating wellfields is 2 km. The water quality meets all regulatory requirements, which is monitored quarterly by sampling.

Faults maybe be both conductors and screens (isolators) for solutions.

There are about five small faults identified within the uranium deposit area. Preliminary hydrogeological tests demonstrate no leakage through faults. Potential faults impact will be studied in more details in future.

Large Nossob fault is located far from the deposit. Should the leaching solutions leak and cannot reach the production wells (with dissolved uranium), this will be stopped at an earlier stage.

The problem of excursions has long been known. Therefore, to eliminate the consequences, a plan of well-researched measures for environmental protection has been already developed and practiced worldwide.

All environmental protection measures are described in detail in the elaborate work project, which is based on thorough research and testing. This document must be considered and approved by all the supervisory authorities before the mine starts its operation. At operating mines, all movements of solutions are carefully monitored and controlled, through strategically placed monitoring wells system.

The assumption that acid instantly spreads for many kilometers around does not correspond to the actual data obtained over many years of uranium mining. Technogenic solutions circulate within the ore body. Observation of the movement of the technogenic spot for 30 years has shown that spreading is limited to the first tens of meters. This distance depends on the interaction of solutions with formations and the rate of natural flow.

The presence of cross-flows and spillage is determined by geophysical survey methods and analysis of solution composition in monitoring wells.

The areal extent can vary and depends on specific hydrogeological conditions. Therefore, for basins such as the Stampriet, it is necessary to carry out thorough hydrogeological studies, exploration works to determine the areas of uranium and associated radionuclides distribution. Only on the basis of these data can rules for the safe use of water resources in this region will be determined.

Yes. Potential ISR impact on the host environment is being studied during exploration and pilot test mining/plant. It is prudent to note that, these practical and factual pre-feasibility studies are the data required for the Mining License (ML) application. Therefore considerations ranging from technologies and costs to environmental and social impacts are well covered during the pilot test mining/plant stage.

If the project is found to be dangerous or deemed detrimental to the environment after pilot test plant/mining is completed, it will be stopped.

The target of the pilot test is to determine:

• main technical and economic parameters of the project and make a decision on its further development.
• potential ISR impact on the host environment.

• Pilot test consists of a one five spot well pattern and a processing pilot plant based on ion exchange technology.
• Four injection wells are located at a distance of 15 m from one another with one recovery well in the center
• Four observation wells are installed to monitor leaching solutions migration: two wells inside the pattern contour (one in the aquifer above and one in the aquifer below the aquifer bearing the ore body). Two other wells are installed outside the pattern contour along the natural flow direction of underground water, 20 m and 40 m from the pattern respectively.
• Pilot test mining area covers only 225 sq.m – 0.00002 % of the deposit.

No, the exploration stage has not been completed, but only 50%-60%. The company’s next step is to do the pilot test mining and continue with exploration boreholes drilling campaign in order to gather complete data. Exploration drilling is a physical process, that doesn’t change the chemistry of the environment, but it will help us understand the ore body extension, which simultaneously will help identify the distribution of radionuclides in the water. All the data collected through exploration drilling and test mining need to be submitted in order to obtain a mining license. Only then can the design of mine will be started. Once the construction of the mine is completed, then production can start.