Associated Event
29th International Conference on Paste, Thickened and Filtered Tailings
31 May–2 June 2027 | Quebec City, Quebec, Cana
Mine Fill Seminar
29-30 May 2027 | Quebec City, Canada
Stay tuned for more information on this associated event.
Backfill has evolved considerably over the last century, particularly with the introduction of cemented paste backfill (CPF) over three decades ago. During this time, CPF has become the most widely utilised type of backfill. It has many advantages, ranging from its speed of delivery and engineered strength to environmental advantages due to placing tailings underground and reducing the size of surface tailings storage facilities.
This seminar will start by introducing how CPF fits within the both the mining and tailings cycles. From there it will focus on more operationally driven topics, dealing with how to monitor and document a backfill system, how to update a system due to operational changes, as well as analysing case studies on how operations have dealt with these operational changes.
The objective of this ACG seminar, facilitated by Dr Ryan Veenstra, Newmont Australia, is to bring together backfill specialists, leaders, and operators from around the globe to present a comprehensive learning experience.
| Time | Seminar Program* |
|---|---|
|
07:30 |
REGISTRATION |
|
08:00 |
Welcome and introduction Dr Ryan Veenstra, Newmont |
|
08:10 |
Backfill within the mining cycle Dr Will Bawden, Canada (remote presenter) |
|
08:55 |
Backfill within the tailings cycle Kim Morrison, Newmont, USA (remote presenter) |
|
09:40 |
Dealing with tailings changes Dr Ryan Veenstra |
|
10:00 |
MORNING BREAK |
|
10:15 |
Types of backfill and their uses Tony Grice, AMC Consultants, Canada |
|
11:00 |
Seismics in relation to backfill Dr Matt Helinski, Minefill Services |
|
12:00 |
LUNCH |
|
13:00 |
The backfill quality control system Dr Ryan Veenstra |
|
13:50 |
Using as-built data Dr Ryan Veenstra |
|
14:10 |
Impact of cemented paste fill quality on an operation’s quality control program Ben Barsanti, Operational Geotechs |
|
14:30 |
AFTERNOON BREAK |
|
14:50 |
Upgrading an operating underground distribution system Leslie Correia, Paterson & Cooke |
|
15:40 |
Pipeline wear monitoring Glenn MacGregor, ArmorPIPE |
|
16:00 |
Panel discussion |
|
16:30 |
SEMINAR CLOSE |
*Program subject to change.
Seminar Facilitator and Presenter
Dr Ryan Veenstra
Global Backfill Specialist
Newmont
Ryan is Newmont’s global backfill specialist, providing technical and operational expertise and leadership for Newmont’s underground mines. Over the last 15 years, he has been involved in backfill as an academic, consultant, and onsite engineer, and presently coaches and mentors Newmont’s backfill engineers in Australia and the Americas. His expertise and experience cover the entire backfill system with a particular speciality in backfill geomechanics. He has a geological engineering degree from the University of Waterloo and holds a PhD in civil engineering from the University of Toronto.
Seminar Presenters
Paul Carmichael
North American Backfill Manager
Paterson & Cooke, USA
Paul manages Paterson & Cooke’s North American backfill group and has over 10 years’ experience in mining operations and backfill consulting in Australia, Asia, the Middle East, and the Americas. His focus is on all areas of backfill operations, operational improvement, incident investigation, commissioning, training, and underground design. Coming from operations, he’s passionate about designing safe, practical, and intuitive backfill systems. Paul holds a mining engineering degree from the University of New South Wales, Sydney.
Louis-Philippe Gelinas
Principal Mining Backfill Engineer
Agnico Eagle, Canada
Louis-Philippe is a principal mining backfill engineer specialising in cemented paste and cemented rockfill backfill design, optimisation, and operational performance. With over a decade of experience in underground mining, he has led major technical initiatives focused on improving backfill reliability, rheology control, and long-term geomechanical stability. His work bridges field operations and applied research, helping mines integrate data-driven decision-making into backfill systems. He is passionate about advancing backfill practices to support safer and more efficient mining operations.
Sue Longo
Senior Technical Director
WSP, Canada
Sue is a principal and senior project manager with over 24 years’ experience in domestic and international mining projects, with a focus on backfill and tailings disposal in the mining, power and oil sand industries. Sue has worked on conceptual, feasibility and detailed engineering design mandates, as well as start-up and commissioning assignments and operation of pilot plants. She has acted as the design and site lead on a multimillion dollar contracted backfill delivery program for a closed uranium and gold mines in Canada.