Wildlife Protection & Odor Control
Waterfowl can be kept away from leach ponds through the use of ECC Bird Deterrent Plastic Ball used for wildlife protection and odor control.
In gold mining applications, heap leach pregnant solution ponds must be covered to prevent waterfowl fatalities. The conventional solution has been netting, which is expensive to maintain, is regularly damaged by winter storms and fails to camouflage the liquid surface from the air.
By floating a layer of ECC Bird Deterrent Plastic Ball on the surface, the liquid is camouflaged and birds fail to see the ponds. The balls rise and fall with changing liquid levels and easily accommodate objects such as floating pump barges.
Advantages and Benefits
Liquid Loss Through Evaporation
Water is an expensive commodity, especially to mine operators who work in mountainous or inaccessible locations. A single layer of Vapor Balls automatically arrange themselves into a close-packed formation over 91% of the surface area, greatly reducing sunlight penetration (and thus reducing liquid evaporation). The thermal insulating qualities of Vapor Balls also assist in maintaining winter operating temperatures of the water.
Operations
Vapor Balls are black UV stabilized HDPE to provide more than 10 years of continuous service in conventional applications. The balls are also completely reusable, should another basin require covering if and when the original location is no longer in service.
Maintenance Free
Unlike netting, Vapor Balls are an “install-and-forget” solution. The balls are simply poured from their packing onto the liquid surface. Moderate winds and snow — which damage netting so easily — fail to affect a Vapor Balls floating cover.
Surface Coverage
The people at ECC have over 40 years experience with hollow plastic balls for industrial applications. The ball weight and diameter of the standard Vapor Balls usually gives optimal performance at moderate wind speeds while ensuring the most economical cost per square foot. A ECC Vapor Balls weighs a nominal 40.0g and is 100mm (4″) in diameter. Approximately 116 balls cover one square metre (10 per sq ft). Should the surface of the pond be exposed to higher wind speeds, our heavier 120g water-filled Vapor Balls are recommended.