Southern Alberta is known for its vast farmland, which contributes billions of dollars to the economy and Chris Spearman fears the proposed Grassy Mountain Coal Mine will negatively impact the agri-food sector and southern Alberta.
Spearman, former Lethbridge mayor and a spokesman for the group Water For Food, says he was alarmed at the Dec. 20 announcement and is wondering why the Albertan government would jeopardize the economy for a project that has a limited life span.
“My question to the Government of Alberta is why would you jeopardize (the agriculture economy) by building a cola mine that’ll only generate 400 over a limited life of 25 years at the max.” The Oldman River provides water for a significant portion of Canada’s irrigated land and, according to a scientific paper titled Environmental Pollution, Volume 344 by Colin A. Cooke, Craig A. Emmerton and Paul E. Drevnick, published March 1, 2024, water samples collected downstream from historical coal mines contained selenium.
For the rest of this article: https://lethbridgeherald.com/news/lethbridge-news/2025/01/30/water-for-food-voices-concerns-over-coal-minings-impact-on-ag-sector/