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

Hollister Waste Rock Facility

Hollister Waste Rock Facility Storage Tierra Group performed a third-party peer review of a Waste Rock Storage Facility (WRSF) design at Klondex Mines’ (Klondex) Hollister Mine in northern Nevada. The WRSF, as designed, involved lining the mine’s existing West Pit…

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Çöpler Tailings Storage Facility and Heap Leach Facility Technical Review

Tierra Group has a history of annually providing third-party technical reviews for the tailings storage facility and heap leach facility at Anagold's Çöpler Gold Mine in Middle Anatolia, Turkey. Additionally, Tierra Group currently performs independent technical reviews for the rockfill…

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Campo Morado Mine

Dam Safety Review Tierra Group performed a Dam Safety Review (DSR) for Nyrstar’s tailings storage facility (TSF) located in Campo Morado (Guerrero, Mexico).  Tierra Group served as the Tailings Reviewer to ensure conformity with local regulations, the Nyrstar Tailings Storage…

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Pit Slope Design | County Line Project

Tierra Group conducted a geotechnical investigation program to provide data for pit slope design. Tierra Group provided field support through oriented core logging, pit wall mapping, selected samples for laboratory testing, and provided pit slope design recommendations for safe open…

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Goldstrike Mine

Engineer of Record Barrick’s Goldstrike Mine processes 30,000 tons of gold ore per day from its combined open-pit/underground operations located in the historic Carlin Trend in Nevada, U.S.A. Goldstrike’s tailings are stored in the North Block Tailings Disposal Facility (NBTDF).…

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Brushy Creek 2

Tierra Group was commissioned by Doe Run to design a new tailings storage facility at the Brushy Creek Mine. Tierra Group completed a geotechnical investigation including boring, classifying, and sampling soil and rock. Trade-off studies were performed to minimize construction…

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Bunker Hill

Dry Stack Tailings Storage Facility Tierra Group designed a dry stack TSF to store excess tailings from the underground paste backfill. The dry stack TSF was challenging, given the limited land area, steep terrain, seasonal cold weather, and surface water…

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Empire State Mine

Dam Breach Analyses Tierra Group prepared a DBA to evaluate potential downstream impacts due to a hypothetical failure (breach) in three components of Empire State Mines (ESM) tailings storage facility (TSF): North Dam (ND), South Dam (SD), and West Perimeter…

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Tonopah Flats | Tailings Storage Facility

Tierra Group assisted with developing tailings disposal alternatives.

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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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Los Gatos Project

TSF Design and CQA Tierra Group provided detailed Stage 1 and 2 Tailings Storage Facility design, conducted a process plant geotechnical foundation investigation, and provided Construction Quality Assurance for Sunshine Silver Mining's Los Gatos Project in Chihuahua, Mexico. Tierra Group then…

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Anglo American Quellaveco Mine | Perú

Tierra Group supervised a geotechnical and hydrogeologic drilling investigation program at Anglo American’s Quellaveco Mine in the Moquegua Region of Peru. Geotechnical Investigation Tierra Group developed a geotechnical and hydrogeological research plan within and near the Quellaveco Pit footprint. This…

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