Ch. 3 Land - Environment Yukon

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Faro Mine Development 1953 Vangorda lead-zinc deposit discovered and staked by prospector Al Kulan 1953-1955 Prospector Airways optioned the property and conducted drilling programs 1955-1962 Kerr-Addison Mines acquired property but due to depressed metal prices, little work was done 1962 Exploration resumed 1965 Faro lead-zinc deposit discovered, a joint venture between Cyprus Mines and Dynasty formed to develop Faro deposit 1969-1984 Cyprus Anvil Mining Corporation operated the mine 1973 Grum lead-zinc deposit discovered 1975 In March a tailings pond spill occurred when 245,000 cubic meters of tailings slurry contaminated Rose Creek 1984 All production ceased completely by the end of 1984 1985 Curragh Inc acquired the property in 1985 and resumed operations in 1986 1989 The Faro operations supplied three per cent of the western world’s zinc and five per cent of its lead concentrates, making Curragh Inc the 6th largest zinc producer in the world 1991 Stripping of Grum deposit began 1992 Ore reserves in Faro Pit exhausted, test work done on Grum deposit 1993 Mining operations ceased due to low metal prices and Curragh Inc was forced into receivership by its creditors 1994 Anvil Range Mining Corporation acquired the Faro property from the receiver and resumed production in 1995 1996 Anvil Range Mining Corporation filed a decommissioning plan By the end of 1996 the Vangorda pit was mined out but the mill continued to process low-grade stockpiles at 50 per cent capacity until March 1997 1997 The mine reopened at full production in November 1997 and operated until January 1998 1998 On April 21, 1998, an interim receiver was appointed to review the company’s assets. 2000 The Faro property may be managed by DIAND, the Yukon government and Cominco until a new owner aquires the property work was continued on the three trial plots that were established in July 1996 on the Canadian Knoll, and in the spring of 1998, 101 willow trees were planted on plots at the base of a south exposed face of Canadian waste rock storage area 4. The reason for using native seed and pioneering woody species (willows) is to encourage the invasion of indigenous permanent species to establish a self-sustaining vegetation cover. Viceroy Resources has a very good environmental record, and in 1992 they received an Environmental Excellence in Reclamation Award for the Castle Mountain Mine in California, where environmental regulations are very strict. Viceroy implements the same environmental policy on their Brewery Creek property and has committed no violations. Hard Rock Mining Properties – Inactive Mines Mount Skukum The Mount Skukum Mine in the Wheaton River valley is the only mine in the Yukon that has been decommissioned by the mine operator to a state, which is acceptable to federal government authorities. There are still buildings including the mill on the site, but these are located on an active surface land lease, which has its own abandonment plan. Mount Nansen The first recorded lode gold discovery on the current Mount Nansen property was made in 1943 and the first underground work was conducted in 1947. The area underwent development, trenching and periods of inactivity until 1967/68 when a flotation mill was constructed. The mine operated until April 1969, and reopened for 10 months in 1975/76. In 1984 BYG Natural Resources Inc acquired the properties and carried out exploration programs. The company poured the 4 8 ❧ Y U K O N S T A T E O F T H E E N V I R O N M E N T R E P O R T 1999
first bar of gold on November 23, 1996 and operated sporadically until February 1999. The mine went into voluntary receivership on March 23, 1999 but the receivers abandoned the site on July 28, 1999. DIAND Water Resources has taken over operation of the water treatment facilities 5 (see water chapter). The future of the Mount Nansen Gold Mine is uncertain at this time. If appropriate treatment does not take place and if the integrity of the impoundment structures are compromised, there will likely be significant damage to water, fish and wildlife. Concerns have been raised by the Little Salmon Carmacks First Nation, regarding impacts to the wildlife from ingestion of contaminated waters. Studies proposed for 2001 will examine the level of contaminants in local vegetation. Faro The lead-zinc mine near Faro consists of three open pits. Of the three open pits developed on the minesites, two (Faro and Vangorda) are depleted of economic ore reserves while the third (Grum) contains up to five years of mineable ore reserves. While the Faro mine has provided employment and income to the Yukon over a period of thirty years, there may be differing perceptions from people who live a traditional life style. Local First Nation Elder, Charlie Dick, speaks about the Faro mine: “The place where I used to hunt years ago, I call it my farm back then, that’s where we used to gather as Native people. We went there to dry out meat; we hunted our gophers there; we got our ground hogs there. But now when I go to this place, there’s a big mountain that has been removed by the mining company and the place where I used to hunt is no longer there. That makes my heart hurt and makes me feel sad just to think about it.” The Faro property has been operated by three main companies since 1969 and currently is in receivership for the second time. In 1996, Anvil Range Mining Corporation filed the Integrated Comprehensive Abandonment Plan with the Yukon Territory Water Board which outlines proposed decommissioning activities. The plan is still under review. The chronology of events at the largest mine in the Yukon is shown on page 48. Reclamation work has consisted of small re-vegetation plots in the Vangorda Plateau in 1996. Approximately 10 hectares were seeded with a mixture of fescues, rye, wheat and clover, and were fertilized during the first season. Most plots continue to support healthy growth of grasses. DIAND funded physical reclamation work in 1994 and 1998 which involved re-sloping and providing a till cover on sections of the Vangorda waste dump. Some revegetation work has been completed on these slopes 6. In September 1999, DIAND funded a project to salvage scrap steel from the Faro minesite. It is expected that over a thousand tonnes of metal will be removed before the winter of 1999 7. Long term reclamation requirements for the minesites are included in the two water licences and may undergo further investigation. Although some reclamation work is progressing, this represents a small portion of what will be required. The estimated figure for clean–up is around $100 million. The water licence for the Vangorda Plateau minesite requires perpetual collection and treatment of minesite effluent (see water chapter). Keno-Elsa The United Keno Hill Mines property, in the Elsa and Keno areas, consists of several underground and open-pit silverlead-zinc mines. The Elsa operation has been in production since the initial discovery of silver in 1906. The mill last operated in 1989 and exploration and development has occurred sporadically since then, mainly at the Bellekeno and Silver King Mines. The property is currently under care and maintenance. Minto Minto Explorations Ltd is proposing to develop the Minto property that would entail an open pit and underground operation, waste rock piles, a thickened tailings storage facility, ore crushing facility and conventional copper flotation mill. Permitting is in place with the granting of a type A water licence in May 1998 and a Quartz Mining Licence in October 1999, but start up of operations is not expected until some time in 2000 due to current low copper prices. Ketza River The mine at Ketza River, east of Ross River, is currently under care and maintenance. During the second week in October 1999, a sulphur dioxide leak from a storage tank was detected. Although the tank was thought to be empty, there was some residual gas remaining. Pressure had built up over time and the gas had leaked out through a rusty valve. The gas is toxic and combines with water to create sulphuric acid. Government officials removed the threat by releasing the pressure in the tank and replaced the valve. The mine owner, YGC Resources Ltd. is responsible for cleaning up and remediating the site (8, 9). Several projects are in the development stage: Dublin Gulch/New Millennium Mining Limited near Mayo, Kudz Ze Kayah/Cominco near Finlayson Lake, and Carmacks Copper/ Western Copper Holdings Ltd near Carmacks. These projects have either been through the environmental screening or are in the final stages of environmental assessments. C H A P T E R 3 L A N D ❧ 4 9
Page 1 and 2: The Yukon is situated in the northw
Page 3 and 4: number of humans is immense. As cou
Page 5 and 6: Different data sources for 1999 tha
Page 7 and 8: ■ protecting core areas within ea
Page 9 and 10: within the study area in February 1
Page 11 and 12: 3.4 Mining Mining has been an impor
Page 13 and 14: An environmental review committee,
Page 15: Reclamation and Abandonment When th
Page 19 and 20: This creates uncertainty and delays
Page 21 and 22: every year in the Yukon, but the an
Page 23 and 24: Direct Costs: ■ Picking up Whiteh
Page 25 and 26: The Yukon’s beverage container re
Page 27 and 28: Contaminant? In Carcross, the recen
Page 29 and 30: PROGRESS & CHALLENGES Since the 199
Page 31 and 32: with the objective of import replac
Page 33 and 34: still exist along the old trails an
Page 35 and 36: 3.8 Tourism Tourism is gaining impo

Ch. 3 Land - Environment Yukon

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