The Government of Yukon continues to provide updates to Yukoners regarding progress on the remediation work and environmental monitoring at the Eagle Gold heap leach failure.
Chief Dawna Hope of the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyäk Dun has stated to media she is concerned about the environmental implications of the mine waste that has been allegedly leaking since summer.
According to a recent update, work continues on drilling a series of wells behind the recently completed safety berm. These wells will be used to intercept contaminated groundwater. Work also continues on constructing other groundwater interception systems. This includes sumps and wells to capture contaminated groundwater that has moved towards Haggart Creek, and to help prevent additional contaminated groundwater from entering the environment.
The new water treatment plant is expected to be completed soon as the site team is finalizing plans for winter operations and preparation for management of freshet. Water management and treatment will be the primary focus in the coming months to ensure there is adequate capacity to withstand the expected freshet conditions.
PricewaterhouseCoopers, in its capacity as court-appointed Receiver of Victoria Gold Corp, has filed an application with the Yukon Water Board to support the ongoing water management required to respond to the heap leach facility failure. The Yukon Water Board is an independent agency in charge of issuing water licences, including for mining projects.
The winter months will also be used to continue studying the stability of the heap leach and to develop plans to stabilize the facility.
Contamination of local creek
Results from surface water samples taken from Haggart Creek between September 30 and November 6 continue to show that groundwater contaminated by the heap leach failure has reached the creek.
Total mercury exceeded water quality objectives (WQO) at four monitoring locations, which shows that elevated levels of total mercury are present in the creek three kilometres downstream of the mine site.
During this same period, results from Haggart Creek show that cyanide and cobalt levels are increasing and continue to exceed water quality objectives at some monitoring locations.
Results from samples collected on October 18 detected methyl mercury in Haggart Creek for the first time. Methyl mercury is a form of mercury that has the potential to bioaccumulate in fish and animal tissues and it was detected at four monitoring locations in Haggart Creek.
As a result, additional sampling for methyl mercury will be undertaken to collect more information and better understand what this means for fish, wildlife and the environment.
According to the government statement, while the levels of total mercury and other metals in Haggart Creek exceed water quality objectives, they do not pose a heightened risk to the health of residents or individuals using the land and water downstream of the mine. Yukoners should continue to avoid eating fish harvested in the immediate area of the mine.
For additional monitoring results, visit: https://yukon.ca/en/victoria-gold-updates/environmental-monitoring.
Featured image: Victoria Gold Corp.’s Eagle Gold Mine in Yukon. Credit: Victoria Gold Corp.
