Statement of Qualifications

Mankind lives on the earth. Everything built, either originated from, is built on, or interacts with, the earth. Geology is the science of the earth. Geotechnical Engineering is the application of geology and mathematics to use Earth’s natural resources to build infrastructure. Tierra Group International, Ltd. applies its geotechnical expertise to the conception, design, construction, and operations of physical structures for the mining industry, including:

  • Foundations
  • Tailings Dams
  • Water Dams
  • Heap Leach Pads
  • Mine Pits
  • Waste Rock Dumps
  • Hydraulic Structures (Canals, Channels, Pipelines, etc.)
  • Civil Infrastructure (Plants, Buildings, Roads, Bridges, etc.)

Tierra Group has applied its 100+ years combined professional geological and engineering expertise consulting on, or designing and constructing, dozens of these structures on six continents. This geographic variety has allowed Tierra Group’s Team to develop expertise designing facilities under challenging geotechnical conditions such as:

  • Laterites
  • Saprolites
  • Swelling or Collapsible Soils
  • Karst
  • Variable Geology
  • Highly and Active Seismicity (Earthquakes)
  • High Altitudes (4,000-m amsl)
  • Tropics

Tierra Group has innovatively adapted to these challenging environments using highly-trained professionals and state-of-the-art techniques and software to perform the following tasks and analyses:

  • Site Characterization
  • Soil/Rock Mechanics
  • Geologic Hazards - Landslide, Rock Fall, Avalanches, Seismic (Earthquakes)
  • Geotechnical Analyses - Slope, Stability, Seepage, Settlement, Consolidation, Deformation, Liquefaction
  • Civil Design and Specifications
  • Construction Documents
  • Resident Engineering
  • Quality Assurance
  • Operations Support
  • Forensics and Mitigation
  • Peer Reviews

Regardless of the geotechnical challenges posed, Tierra Group’s broad experience, intimate attention to site-specific conditions, and keen focus on developing innovative solutions, has earned us a respected reputation and loyal clients around the world.


Select Geotechnical Projects

Antapaccay

Glencore’s Antapaccay mine is located in the Espinar province, Cuzco, Perú. Tierra Group logged geotechnical, geological and geo-mechanical properties of drill core advanced in Antapaccay's Northern Pit. Approximately 6,000 meters of core were logged. Specific samples were selected for geotechnical…

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Hod Mine Waste Dump and Surface Water Management Design

Tierra Group provided design review and technical direction at Hod Mine in the Artvin Province of Turkey. Work included detailed design of potentially acid generating and non-acid generating waste dump facilities, their appurtenant structures and stormwater management design for the…

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Peñasquito

Tierra Group was selected to assist Goldcorp with global Tailings Stewardship Strategy (TSS) implementation at all of Goldcorp’s active tailings sites in Latin America (Mexico, Argentina, and Guatemala). Tierra Group worked in conjunction with Goldcorp and another global engineering consulting…

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Jerritt Canyon Mine

2023 Dam Inspections/Review Tierra Group completed a site visit to inspect three tailings storage facilities (TSFs) and the Evaporation Pond. In addition to the site visit and dam inspections, design and monitoring reports (prepared by others) were reviewed for each…

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El Aguila

Tierra Group performed a 3rd party engineering design peer review of a tailings storage facility expansion design. The review resulted in the owner realizing $650,000 in cost savings without compromising the facility's design integrity over the original design. Tierra Group also…

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Sweetwater Mine

Sweetwater Mine Permitting Tierra Group’s Team began work at the Sweetwater mine in 1993 assisting permitting and developing tailings impoundment management strategies for the mine. We successfully designed and installed an innovative internal seal for repair of the mine’s damaged…

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La Libertad Mine

Tierra Group engineers designed La Esperanza TSF, a 2.1-km long, 35-m high, earthfill tailings dam with an HDPE lined impoundment footprint of 840,000 m2. Tierra Group  designed and provided Construction Quality Assurance (CQA) for all subsequent downstream dam stages. Stage…

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Amulsar Gold Project

Tierra Group completed a technical review of the heap leach pad for the Amulsar Mine property owned by Lydian Armenia located near the town of Jermuk to the southeast of Armenia. The heap leach pad consists of four phases with…

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San Francisco Mine

Tierra Group conducted geo-electrical testing to locate leaks present in the geomembrane liners underlying a Solution Conveyance Canal, Sumps 1 and 2, and the Intermediate Pond at Timmins Gold Corp’s San Francisco Mine in Sonora, Mexico. Leak detection testing procedures…

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Black Butte Copper Project

Tierra Group performed an independent engineering design review of a Cemented Tailings Facility (CTF) and multiple processes and freshwater ponds. Tailings will be mixed with cement at the paste plant and deposited in the CTF along with underground mine development…

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Copperstone Project

Tierra Group International, Ltd. participated as the geotechnical lead engineering firm for the Copperstone Project Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) in Arizona, U.S.A. Tierra Group was responsible for tailings and waste rock storage, water management and underground geotechnics design and cost estimates…

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Sterling Mine

Sterling Mine is an underground gold mine in southern Nevada which recovers gold through heap leaching and a carbon adsorption-desorption-recovery (ADR) plant. Tierra Group team members have a long history at Sterling, starting with heap leach pad final permanent closure…

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