Revised Final Environmental Study Report (24 MB) - Gold Canyon ...

Gold Canyon Resources Inc: Final Environmental Study Report Review
March 30, 2013
there is more economic benefit to the eastern corridor project, without the evidence;
economic assessment, to back it up.
The eastern corridor is not necessary for continued exploration at Springpole by
GCU, and is being perused to increase Springpole property and GCU stock value.
In past it was clearly communicated by GCU and MNR that stakeholders (tourist outfitters)
could only raise concerns pertinent to corridor development, and any reference made to
exploration activities and their impacts were not entertained. Therefore, in future if GCU is
to make reference to exploration activities within the ESR, as a means of justifying road
construction activities, then concerned stakeholders should have the right to comment and
raise concerns about the full extent of GCU Springpole Gold Project activities.
Recommendation: GCU needs to remove all reference to Springpole exploration as a
justification for development of the eastern corridor. If reference is not removed, then
Stakeholders, First Nation communities, organizations and the public will freely comment
on all aspects of GCU Springpole related activities as a whole.
5.2 Study Areas and Corridor Dimensions
What is not discussed throughout the ESR and Technical Reports, is the total length and
dimensions of the proposed eastern corridor, nor the exact areas investigated during the
baseline fieldwork studies.
In typical ESRs pertaining to roadways or access corridors, there is a full description of the
length, width and potential impact zone of the corridor, as well as project area description.
With typical corridor projects, a surrounding impact/buffer zone is established, based on
the anticipated environmental and socio-economic impacts the project will have. GCU did
not stipulate in the ESR or Technical Reports that a impact/buffer zone had been
established. The rationale behind establishing an impact/buffer zone is to mitigate
potential negative impacts associated with corridor use that may be inflicted upon nearby
water bodies, land occupants, First Nation traditional use activities, archaeological sites,
wildlife, protected areas, etc.
As it pertains to safety, which is a justification for the project, road dimensions should be
clearly stated. Those who travel along the Wenasaga Road, will notice numerous grave sites
located along the ditches. GCU does not provide any safety statistics for travel on the
Wenasaga road. Portions of the Wenasaga road are used by private land-owners, increased
large truck traffic on that road will inevitably lead to an increased number of collisions and
wildlife strikes: Which will be compounded if Domtar also uses the same corridor.
Recommendation: GCU and OMNR need to publish the all-season road safety statistics for
the Wenasaga road, and include preliminary calculations based on statistics, on what future
road safety projections might be.
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