Abandoned Mines in Canada: the MiningWatch Canada Strategy

1. Abandoned Mines in Canada:the MiningWatch Canada Strategy

2. The Problem in 1999 • Over 10,000 abandoned mines in Canada • Very little public awareness of the issue • Provincial governments responsible for mines in their jurisdiction • Federal government responsible for uranium, and mines in north • Little political will to do anything

3. Britannia Mine

4. Britannia Mine Pouring AMD (Acid Mine Drainage) into Howe Sound • Discharge from old adits at 2200 and 4100 levels • Metals-contaminated tailings flowing into Howe Sound • Contaminated ground-water • Former infrastructure

5. Faro MineOver $250 million and counting • Lead/zinc mine, operated 1969-1998 • 3 large open pits • Waste rock dumps • 57 million tonnes of tailings • Seepage from tailings pond

6. Giant Mine237,000 tonnes of arsenic tri-oxide

7. Giant Mine • 237,000 tonnes of arsenic tri-oxide stored in 15 underground chambers • On surface, arsenic contaminated buildings,tailings and oils, asbestos • Produced 7 million ounces of gold 1948-1999 • Plan is to freeze the arsenic and surrounding rock underground • Tailings covers, demolish buildings

8. Giant Mine bulkhead

9. Colomac Mine

10. Colomac • 222 kms north of Yellowknife • Operated 1989-1997 • Tailings area full to overflowing: cyanide, ammonia, metals • Affecting food chain, caribou and fish

11. Hollinger MineThreatening Timmins

12. Timmins Sinkhole 2005Crown Pillar Collapse

13. Kam KotiaMore acidic than battery acid • 6 million tonnes of acid-generating tailings • Zinc/copper mine 1943-61 • Metals in Kamikotia River • Sediments in river contaminated • Run-off pH1.8-2.5 • Over $55 million

14. Mt. Washington MineDestroying a $2 million/year salmon fishery

15. Port RadiumLeaving a village of widows

16. Port Radium • Mined for silver and radium 1929-1940; for uranium 1942-1960; for silver 1964-82 • 1.7 million tonnes if uranium and silver tailings on site (contained) and in Great Bear Lake (uncontained) • Remediation plan being prepared

17. Deloro Miners100 years of mining…only toxins left

18. Deloro MineArsenic and radioactivity

19. The context A series of shocking problems with mines: 1987- Highway collapses at Cobalt 1990- Matachawan tailings dam breaks 1995- Mt Washington destroying fishery 1996- EMCBC calls attention to Britannia, others 1997-1999- a number of mines go bankrupt in the North ICME commissions paper on reclamation bonding MMSD report 2001

20. Governments beginning to pay attention 1993- Canadian Council of Ministry of the Environment issues report on contaminated sites 1998- Canada-Wide Accord on Environmental Harmonization affirms “polluter pays” principle 1999 Ontario announces $27 million for cleanup EMCBC petitions Commission for Environmental Cooperation about Britannia, Mt. Washington and Tulsequah Chief

21. Our strategy Research all available information Build public awareness of issues and particular mines: inform our colleagues, media Make the federal government pay attention to the issue: briefs to cabinet; lobby with others Develop a national task force with public servants and industry

22. Raised hell about individual mines Hired W. O. Mackasey to research inventories Distributed the papers to eight federal cabinet ministers and the press Called for A National Inventory A transparent system for ranking hazards Emergency response Mechanisms A funding mechanism to recover costs from the industry What We Did

23. National Orphaned and Abandoned Mines Initiative (NOAMI) In early 2000, set up a meeting with Mining Association of Canada Agreed to work together to get federal and provincial governments aware and involved Complete disagreement on polluter pays Conference with communities, industry, federal/provincial governments, and Auditor-General’s office in June 2001

24. Planning the Winnipeg Conference

25. NOAMI Accomplishments Web site: www.abandoned-mines.org Conference on assessing liability and funding approaches November 2005 National database researched and will be in place this fall Finished four major reports: Funding Approaches Legal and Institutional Barriers to Collaboration Community Involvement (case studies) Establishing a National Database

26. GreenBudget Coalition Worked with an Ecological Fiscal Reform Coalition to put forward the Clean Canada Fund Intensive lobbying with other groups

27. Building the Pressure Conference with Assembly of First Nations Reports on Full Costs and Mining in the Boreal Other NGOs take on specific sites Giant – CARC (Canadian Arctic Resources Committee) Faro and Mt. Nansen – YCS (Yukon Conservation Society) Kam Kotia – Northwatch Port Radium – Dene of Deline Renabi – Missinabie Cree

28. Federal Government Responds Auditor-General’s report November 2002 Treasury Board demands accounting from departments August 2003 – CEC report slams federal government Series of articles syndicated December 2003 March 2004 – federal accounting changes Budget January 2004 – $175 million for abandoned mines clean-up Budget April 2004 – $4 billion for federal contaminated sites

29. Indications of Success Money available and work begun on federal mines Aboriginal communities involved in cleanup Some provinces have announced money for clean-up: $25 million in B.C, $27 million in Ontario

30. Challenges: Making sure the federal money is well spent Making sure reclamation costs are covered Getting polluters to pay the costs Getting proper remediation of sites Getting each province to act

31. Future Strategy Ensure we know what governments are doing in key cases Highlight on-going problems through media, colleagues Provide support to communities (technical assistance, publicity, networking) Continue work with NOAMI – provincial laws, polluter pays, reclamation bonding

32. Schist LakeBefore and After Closure