Glencore’s proposed metallurgical coal mine advances to public comment period
It has been nearly a decade since the Sukunka metallurgical coal mine proposal near Chetwynd and Tumbler Ridge was first pitched to the BC Environmental Assessment Office. The project, estimated to cost $450 million to build, is still in play, and the project will soon enter a final review by the BC Environmental Assessment Office (EAO).
The clock has been stopped on the review several times to allow the company to respond to numerous questions and concerns raised about environmental impacts – from impacts on fish to greenhouse gas emissions and impacts on caribou habitat.
The company behind the project is Glencore Coal Assets Canada, a Canadian subsidiary of the multi-national mining major, Glencore Plc. An EAO application review resumed last week, following the lifting of a suspension that was granted to Glencore to continue discussions about the Southern Mountain Caribou.
On August 2, the BC EAO will begin a public comment period on a draft assessment report and proposed environmental assessment conditions for the proposed mine. The Sukunka project – a proposed open-cut metallurgical coal mine — was first pitched to the BC EAO in 2013 by a former owner, Xtrata Coal Co.
For the rest of this article: https://biv.com/article/2022/07/sukunka-coal-mine-faces-tough-environmental-questions