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Canada Mining – North of 60

ARCHIVES: The Murders In The Mine – by Katherine Laidlaw (Up Here.com – September 18, 2012)

http://uphere.ca/

Eighteen months on the picket line. Thirty-eight kilos of explosives. Nine men dead. 20 years passed.

It’s the story that made world news and changed a mining town forever. The Giant Mine strike stands as one of the longest and bloodiest in Canadian history, punctuated by one of the worst mass murders the country has ever seen. For those who lived through September 18, 1992, the scars have never healed. Here are their stories …

On May 22, 1992, a company called Royal Oak Mines Inc. locked out its workforce at Giant Mine in Yellowknife. The union, the local 4 chapter of the Canadian Association of Smelter and Allied Workers, and management couldn’t reach a settlement. Before the strike, it was a good, if finite, time to be a gold miner.

The average worker at Giant was pulling in $77,000 a year, and those clocking overtime were making more than $100,000. But the strike got dirty quickly as rumours swirled of Royal Oak CEO Peggy Witte’s intent to break the union. One thing she did break was an unwritten labour rule in Canada: you don’t bring in replacement workers. No mining company had done that in 45 years. Nevada-born Witte flew them in by helicopter the next day.

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Don’t let Dawson City’s UNESCO debate pit miner against miner – by Stuart Schmidt (Yukon News – September 14, 2017)

Stuart Schmidt is the past president of the Klondike Placer Miners’ Association.

The nomination of Trondek-Klondike for UNESCO world heritage designation is a contentious subject and I am concerned that it is causing a rift within the membership of the Klondike Placer Miners’ Association (KPMA) and among the placer mining community at large. I would like to try to explain why I support the UNESCO nomination even though there may be no immediate or apparent benefit to gold miners or our organization.

I have not forgotten 2003 when the federal Minister of Fisheries and Oceans cancelled the Yukon Placer Authorization and we were faced with the prospect of most of us not being able to operate any longer or only being able to operate in a very limited fashion in only a few areas. I was truly grateful for all the people in the Yukon who came out and voiced their support for placer mining both in Dawson and across the territory.

I was and continue to be especially grateful to the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation. They came out fully in support of all of us and they carry a lot of political clout. This I have not forgotten and to this day I feel indebted to them for their support during those challenging times.

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Long-awaited N.W.T. mining road through national park gets thumbs up from review board (CBC News North – September 14, 2017)

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/

The much-anticipated all-season road to Canadian Zinc’s Prairie Creek mine passed its environmental assessment this week, more than five years after the Prairie Creek mine was approved in the heart of Nahanni National Park Reserve.

The Mackenzie Valley Review Board announced Tuesday it is recommending the project to the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs for conditional approval. This week’s green light marks the end of a process that lasted more than three years. The nearby Nahanni Butte Dene Band grew impatient, and began construction on their own road to the mine.

However, the board’s support is contingent on the implementation of 16 measures it says will prevent “significant adverse impacts on the environment.” Among those measures: a road adapted for permafrost conditions, along with ongoing permafrost monitoring; wildlife monitoring that incorporates traditional knowledge; and the creation of an independent technical panel to ensure the road’s design protects people and the environment.

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Plan may spur ‘environmental fragmentation’: conservationist – by Emily Blake (Whitehorse Daily Star – September 11, 2017)

http://www.whitehorsestar.com/

Some environmental groups are expressing concerns about the Yukon Resource Gateway Project

Some environmental groups are expressing concerns about the Yukon Resource Gateway Project following a commitment of more than $360 million in federal and territorial funding. The project will see improved road access in the Dawson Range, located between Carmacks and Dawson City, and the Nahanni Range Road in southeast Yukon, both mineral-rich areas in the territory.

And while members of the mining industry and government are applauding the funding announcement, there are concerns about the lack of information on environmental impacts. “We’re not supportive of these projects until we get more information,” Lewis Rifkind, a mining analyst with the Yukon Conservation Society, told the Star last week.

“We’re opening up vast swaths of the Yukon to environmental fragmentation.” He worries about how the infrastructure project might affect woodland caribou. He said an extreme example of this is logging and oil and gas roads in Alberta, where the woodland caribou population has been reduced to around 7,000.

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Roads to Yukon resources: Feds, territory commit C$360 million to modernize Yukon mining roads – by Shane Lasley (North of 60 Mining News – September 10, 2017)

http://www.petroleumnews.com/

Roads to some of Yukon’s richest mining districts are getting more than C$360 million in upgrades. Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau rolled out the plans to invest in modern transportation infrastructure during a visit to the territory on Sep. 2.

“Modern infrastructure is key to developing and properly managing the incredible natural resources we have at our fingertips,” Trudeau said. The prime minister pledged C$247.8 million to the Yukon Resource Gateway project, a program that will upgrade more than 650 kilometers of roads in the territory, and build or replace numerous bridges, culverts, and stream crossings in two minerals-rich regions of the Yukon.

“The Resource Gateway is one of the most significant projects ever undertaken in this territory and will have an incredibly positive impact on the Yukon economy,” said Yukon Premier Sandy Silver.

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Underground expansion could extend Ekati mine life by 7 years, says new report – by Melinda Trochu (CBC News North – September 8, 2017)

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/

First diamond mine in the Northwest Territories could stay open until 2042

Further expansion of underground mining operations at the Ekati diamond mine could keep the mine in business until 2042, according to a preliminary economic assessment released by Dominion Diamond Corporation on Wednesday. Dominion operates the mine, and owns a controlling interest.

The Fox Deep project would expand the mine by developing an underground operation below the mined-out Fox open pit. It follows on the recently-approved Misery Deep project, which is already expected to expand the life of the mine from 2033 to 2035.

Tom Hoefer, executive director of the NWT & Nunavut Chamber of Mines, says Yellowknifers should be doing a happy dance. “A year ago we thought that Ekati had a life to 2021,” says Hoefer. “And so with their work on other pipes and now adding Fox in they’ve created a very exciting future for the N.W.T.’s mining industry.”

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Nunavut Planning Commission gets started on Mary River expansion – by Jim Bell (Nunatsiaq News – September 6, 2017)

http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/

After nearly three years, Baffinland’s Phase 2 scheme starts moving through the Nunavut regulatory system

Nearly three years after Baffinland Iron Mines Corp. first proposed its Phase 2 expansion plan for the Mary River iron mine, an updated version of the project will finally start moving through Nunavut’s regulatory system.

And more than two years after Bernard Valcourt, then the Conservative minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs, exempted the first version of the scheme from the scrutiny of the Nunavut Planning Commission, the NPC will get to look at it after all.

The planning commission, in a public notice issued Aug. 31, now seeks comment from governments, organizations and individuals on an application from Baffinland to change the North Baffin Regional Land Use Plan to allow for a 110-kilometre railway between Mary River and Milne Inlet, and for winter sealifts during the months of December, January and February.

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Heading into public hearing, Nunavut, Agnico Eagle disagree over caribou – by Jane George (Nunatsiaq News – September 5, 2017)

http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/

Final NIRB hearing into Whale Tail gold mine project starts Sept. 19 in Baker Lake

Parties planning to attend the upcoming public session on Agnico Eagle Ltd.‘s Whale Tail gold mine project near Baker Lake have plenty to read and think about between now and the public hearing set for between Sept. 19 and Sept. 22 in Baker Lake before the Nunavut Impact Review Board.

That’s because the mining company submitted a 208-page document to the NIRB Aug. 28, responding to multiple opinions expressed by stakeholders. This document contains detailed responses to comments that the NIRB received from such groups as the Baker Lake Hunters and Trappers Organization, Inuit organizations and the Government of Nunavut about Agnico Eagle’s Whale Tail project.

Despite the heavy use of acronyms and diplomatic jargon like “values” and “appreciates” in the document, it’s likely that big, unresolved issues around caribou will be among topics discussed in Baker Lake. Much of the discussion on caribou in Agnico Eagle’s response is heavily technical.

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Trudeau announces $360 million highway improvement package for Yukon (Halifax Chronicle Herald – September 2, 2107)

http://thechronicleherald.ca/

THE CANADIAN PRESS – WHITEHORSE — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau poured nearly a quarter of a billion dollars into Yukon’s highway network Saturday in hopes it will lead to resource development, but some Indigenous leaders remain wary about environmental implications.

Trudeau and Yukon Premier Sandy Silver announced their two governments will spend more than $360 million to improve road access to mineral-rich areas in the territory. The federal share amounts to $247 million of that total.

The governments say the money will upgrade more than 650 km of road and build or upgrade a number of bridges for highways leading into the Dawson Range in Central Yukon and the Nahanni Range in the southeast part of the territory.

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Preparing for more robots in Yukon mining – by Lewis Rifkind (Yukon News – August 29, 2017)

Increased automation means the territory has to be prepared for changes in the mining industry

Mining creates jobs but jobs are fickle things. Not only humans can do them. Robots and computers can also do them too, and usually do them cheaper and better than humans

Signs of that are obvious, Automated Teller Machines have somewhat replaced human bank tellers. Even ATMs are now being somewhat replaced by online banking applications on smartphones and computers. Certain coffee shops now have automated coffee makers. Press a button and instant, freshly brewed java pours into your cup. Think of how many baristas those machines have replaced.

The mining industry is not immune to these changes. According to a report developed by the McKinsey Global Institute, A future that works: Automation, employment, and productivity (January 2017), 96% of some mining jobs, such as continuous mining machine operators, can be automated.

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Resource-rich NWT begins rewriting its mining rules in an effort to attract investment – by Ashley Renders (Financial Post – August 30, 2017)

http://business.financialpost.com/

Miners are one of the biggest private employers in the territory, but existing projects are close to the end of their lives and exploration interest has declined

Residents of the resource-rich Northwest Territories began consulting on a new Mineral Resource Act on Monday, a made-in-the-North piece of legislation aimed at making the territory more attractive for mining investment.

As one of the largest private employers in the territory, mining is an important part of the economy and makes up one quarter of the region’s GDP. But existing projects are moving closer to the end of their lives and interest from exploration companies dropped, and then stagnated, years ago.

Part of the reason is that mining laws and unsettled land claims have created uncertainty for investors. The government hopes to “redefine” its relationship with the industry through a modern piece of legislation that clearly explains how mining is supposed to be done in the territory.

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Worries mount over what busy mining road in Nunavut could mean for caribou migration – by Sara Frizzell (CBC News North – August 29, 2017)

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/

A vehicle could travel every 6 minutes from the Whale Tail pit project to the Meadowbank mine

Agnico Eagle’s proposed expansion of operations near its Meadowbank gold mine near Baker Lake, Nunavut, is facing opposition. The Kivalliq Inuit Association (KIA), the Government of Nunavut and the Baker Lake Hunters and Trappers Organization have all expressed concern over how a roadway connecting a new open pit mine to processing facilities at Meadowbank will affect caribou migration.

Their concerns appeared in their final written submissions to the Nunavut Impact Review Board, submitted in advance of the final public hearing on the project, which begins on Sept.19 in Baker Lake. Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. had an Aug. 28 deadline to submit its written response to concerns before the hearing.

The new mining operation — the Whale Tail pit — is about 50 kilometres northwest of Meadowbank. It would operate as an open pit mine for between three and four years, and requires a road connecting it to milling facilities at Meadowbank. Agnico Eagle expects mining could begin as early as 2019.

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[Mining] Arctic ambitions: could the opening up of the Arctic become the next South China Sea? – by Nick Whigham (News.com.au – August 28, 2017)

http://www.news.com.au/

ONE of the most inhospitable places on the planet is in danger of becoming a flashpoint as global powers fight for control. THE polar regions are the closest thing left to virgin territory in the modern world. But with sea ice melting at a rapid rate due to global warming, the Arctic Sea — and its abundance of valuable minerals and natural resources — is becoming more accessible each year.

The Arctic, including the fabled Northwest Passage between the Atlantic and the Pacific, is among the last regions on earth to remain largely unexplored. But as new passages open up, the changing conditions in the Arctic are spurring talk of a gold rush for the region’s resources, control of the prized shipping routes, and business opportunities in tourism and fishing.

Russia has steadily been increasing its military presence in recent years while China has found roundabout ways to exert influence in the region. It’s a situation that has led conservationists, industry experts and government officials to raise concerns of increasing geopolitical tension developing in the region. The head of the US Coast Guard even compared the situation to the ongoing dispute over territorial claims of islands in the South China Sea.

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Agnico Eagle asked to respond to concerns over Nunavut gold project – by Jane George (Nunatsiaq News – August 24, 2017)

http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/

As Agnico Eagle Mining Ltd.‘s Whale Tail gold mining project heads toward a final hearing next month in Baker Lake, the mining company has until Aug. 28 to respond to critical comments on its project, recently received by the Nunavut Impact Review Board.

The Kivalliq Inuit Association banked a $6.5 million cheque in Baker Lake from Agnico Eagle this past June, when the mining company and the KivIA signed an Inuit impact and benefit agreement for the Whale Tail project— Agnico Eagle’s third gold mine in Nunavut.

But several of the submissions to the NIRB reveal outstanding environmental and socio-economic concerns on the Whale Tail project which the mining company has been asked to address in advance of a final public hearing on the project, scheduled from Sept. 18 to Sept. 23 in Baker Lake. A look at the comments from Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, the Government of Nunavut and the Baker Lake Hunters and Trappers Organization reveal some serious concerns about the project’s impacts.

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Casanova of the Klondike – by Pierre Berton (Globe and Mail – December 24, 2004)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Of all the eccentric characters who made their pile in the Klondike, my favourite is Swiftwater Bill Gates, a moon-faced little American smooth-talker who was transformed from a penniless dishwasher in Circle City, Alaska, to a potential millionaire.

He might have become a millionaire, had he managed to hold on to his wealth, the bulk of which came from a share he held in Claim No. 13 on Eldorado Creek. Considered unlucky at first because of its number, it turned out to be one of the richest pieces of ground in the gold fields.

A legendary gambler and skirt-chaser, he dropped $500 in less than five minutes at faro and promptly stood drinks for the crowd at a cost of $112. He also lost $5,000 on one bet during a stud poker game he was just watching. When short of cash, he would borrow it at 10 per cent a month in interest so he could shoot pool at $100 a frame.

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