Environment

 

May 2009

• Environmental stewardship and sustainability are important to the mining industry.  Environmental practioners are an important part of the workforce at all mine sites.  The Saskatchewan mining industry directly employees dozens of dedicated environmental professionals at operations throughout the province.

• The Saskatchewan mining industry invests considerable human resources and millions of dollars every year in environmental stewardship activities, including the monitoring of environment stations at sites, prevention and mitigation of environmental impacts, and in decommissioning and reclamation efforts and ongoing research efforts.

• In recognition of the importance of environmental management to our industry the SMA annually sponsors environmental engineering scholarships at the two Saskatchewan universities.

• Environmental stewardship is a part of mine planning from conception to production through to reclamation.  Mining companies incorporate reclamation and decommissioning plans as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment Statement that is submitted to Saskatchewan Environment. These plans go through a thorough public review process before a Mine Operating License is granted.

• As part of their license to operate, all mines are now required to provide financial assurance to government so that in the event that a mine may get abandoned in the future the funding is in place to reclaim the site.

• Existing mines such as the potash mines are working with the government to prepare decommissioning plans (even though they expect to operate for another 100 years).

• All mine sites are governed by a myriad of both federal and provincial regulations including the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, The Fisheries Act, The Navigable Waters Act, The Metal Mining Efficient Regulations, The Species at Risk Act, The Environmental Management and Protection Act, The Spill Control Regulations, The Clean Air Regulations, The Mineral Industry Environmental Protection Regulations, The Hazardous Materials regulations, The Halocarbon Control Regulations just to mention a few.

• The industry actively participates in research, development and implementation of new technologies to improve combustion efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase resource conservation and further reduce environmental impact.

• Mining is a temporary use of the land that only uses 0.1% of available land in the province (less than the size of Saskatoon).

• All mines have extensive tree planting programs for shelterbelts and wildlife habitat.

• Buffer lands around potash operations are managed for sustainable agriculture and/ or wildlife habitat.

• The waste product of potash production is predominantly common salt which is contained in managed storage areas. A portion of the salt is used for highway de-icing, as well as for agricultural and industrial purposes.

• All potash mines have zero discharge to streams or lakes. Surplus brine is discharged into deep strata already containing brine 1300 to 1900 m underground.

• Saskatchewan’s coal mines are unique, in that they undergo continuous reclamation. The objective is to reclaim annually an area equivalent to that which is disturbed.  Mined areas are reclaimed to productive farmland 2 – 3 years after production. Prior to mining, cover soil is salvaged and then directly replaced on recontoured lands.

• Revegetation to minimize wind and water erosion occurs following coversoil replacement. Reclaimed lands are revegetated to a permanent agronomic forage or native species cover that enhances biodiveristy, provides better wildlife habitat and adds organic matter that promotes carbon sequestration.

• Mined lands are reclaimed to an acceptable, sustainable multi-land use so that the land can be returned to a productive state as soon as possible. Reclaimed land could be returned to cereal or forage crop, pasture, natural forest, wildlife habitat, recreation and commercial land uses.

• Water management plans utilized by coal mining operations minimize the impact on surface and ground water resources.

• The Saskatchewan uranium industry is one of the most closely regulated industries in the world. It consistently meets or exceeds all standards set by federal and provincial governments.

• Uranium tailings are handled using the latest technology, which results in the containment of solids and the treatment of water.

• Industry and governments, through a sub committee of the Canadian Mines Ministers, is looking at ways to address the cleanup of orphaned mine sites.  The Gunnar and Lorado Mines in northern Saskatchewan are currently in the process of remediation and reclamation.

• On the exploration front, Canada continues to show world leadership as the Prospectors and Developers Association recently released their environmental excellence in explorative initiative (E3). E3 is an unparalleled online resource of data and environmental management practices designed to promote and ensure that the highest levels of environmental stewardship are practiced on mineral exploration projects worldwide. The SMA was one of the supporting organizations of this initiative and is pleased to see that it is now available to all practitioners at no charge.

• The SMA is also a founding participant of the Saskatchewan Mineral Exploration Government Advisory Committee (SMEGAC), an industry-government working group that has developed Best Management Practices for mineral exploration.  In May 2008 the work of this group was  recognized for an award of environmental excellence by the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Saskatchewan. (www.saskmining.ca/news).

• On the regulatory front, a major milestone was the passing of the provincial government’s Reclaimed Industrial Sites Act in May 2006. The Act is expected to come into force this year and form the basis of permanent institutional control over decommissioned mine sites on Crown land. A perpetual care fund established by mine operators and administered by the province will finance long-term monitoring