This article was provided by the Ontario Mining Association (OMA), an organization that was established in 1920 to represent the mining industry of the province.
The Ontario Mining Association and the Canadian Land Reclamation Association (CLRA) are joining forces to hold the fifth annual Ontario Mine Reclamation Symposium and Field Trip. This event is scheduled for June 20 and 21, 2012 at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay.
The seminar includes sessions on the geology and mining history of the Thunder Bay area along with understanding the chemical properties of peat bogs and blueberry soils on Northwestern Ontario. An update on the development of restoration protocols at De Beers Canada’s Victor diamond Mine, located 90 kilometres west of Attawapiskat, will be presented. These studies are expanding knowledge for reclamation activities in the Ring of Fire area, which is under development.
Another case study will centre on the evolution of closure planning and consultation at Barrick Hemlo Mines Williams gold property near Marathon. Roger Souckey from Barrick Hemlo Mines and Shane Hayes of the Pic Mobert First Nation will be making this presentation. Also, the decommissioning of Vale’s (Inco’s) Shebandowan nickel mine near Thunder Bay will be reviewed.
On June 21, two field trips are organized. One is to the relatively nearby Shebandowan Mine. This nickel mine operated from 1973 until 1998. Reclamation activities have been successfully completed and the facility is now in a state of long-term care and maintenance.
The other field trip is more extensive and goes to Beardmore and Geraldton and the Sturgeon River Gold Belt, where mining activity began in 1925. On the agenda is a tour of the former MacLeod-Cockshutt gold mine, which has been converted into a golf course and an interpretive centre. Imagine from gold to golf for a new land use!
At the banquet on the evening of June 20, the Tom Peters Memorial Mine Reclamation Award for both industry and a student bursary will be presented. Vale is the sponsor of the $5,000 bursary. Previous OMA-CLRA Ontario Mine Reclamation Symposia and Field Trips have been held in Sudbury (2011), Elliot Lake (2010), Timmins (2009) and Kirkland Lake (2008).
The purpose of the mine rehabilitation conferences is to encourage the pursuit of excellence in mine reclamation, share knowledge, information and research results and to learn best practices. It is also to promote a better understanding of the outstanding achievements in mine reclamation to Ontario’s mining industry, the environmental community and the broader public.
Registration for the symposium is $75 and there are various charges for the banquet and field trips. For further information please contact Lesley Hymers (lhymers@oma.on.ca) or Adrianna Stech (astech@oma.on.ca) at the OMA or Bryan Tisch at the CLRA btisch@nrcan.gc.ca.