Water quality concerns due to mining activity remains an issue for Southeast Alaskan communities, and recent moves have been taken by the state to address them.
Last month the State of Alaska submitted a second draft for a statement of cooperation to British Columbia counterparts as part of the two governments’ ongoing talks on transboundary water issues.
Submitted on Jan. 21, the pending agreement would be legally non-binding, but emphasizes the state and Canadian province’s commitment to maintaining water quality.
The initial draft’s release coincided with the signature of a memorandum of understanding between Gov. Bill Walker and B.C. Premier Christy Clark, and the official expressions of cooperation are part of a broader push by the state to protect water quality and watershed integrity, particularly as it pertains to salmon and other stockfish.
In its current form, the statement of cooperation now addresses the risks posed by large tailings dams and puts greater emphasis on transparency. It also leaves open the possibility of involving the International Joint Commission, a body established by the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909 that oversees areas where shared resources between the U.S. and Canada are a concern.
Getting the IJC involved has been a goal of groups advocating for greater input in the oversight over B.C. mines, such as the United Tribal Transboundary Mining Work Group and Salmon Beyond Borders. With channels opened on the state, provincial and national levels, it is hoped some progress will be made to ensure water quality.
“We’re optimistic that this dual track approach is a sound one,” Heather Hardcastle, campaign director for SBB.
In the push for safer mining practices and more stringent oversight, primarily the concern about shared water systems has been directed toward projects upstream of the Stikine, Unuk and Taku rivers, particularly as large scale open pit mining operations begin production.
Last February, Imperial Metals’ Red Chris mining project received interim approval to begin small-scale ore processing, and in June the B.C. Ministry of Environment permitted the mine to discharge tailings and enter full production. Located near the headwaters of the Stikine River, Red Chris was sixth major B.C. mine to have started production since 2011. At least 10 further mining projects are in development in the province.
However, scrutiny has not been limited to Canadian projects. Late last week the City of Angoon issued a public warning to residents of the Admiralty Island community that traditional food sources may be tainted.
Albert Howard is the city’s mayor and president of the Angoon Community Association, and a longtime member of the association’s tribal council. Before the Christmas holiday, Howard said he had requested the state’s help in determining what is causing the elevated metals levels in Hawk Inlet, to what extent this may be damaging to the local ecosystem, and whether its seafood resources are safe for human consumption. The city also wanted the state to take steps to mitigate the hazard and replicate the 1981 Greens Creek per-mining baseline study to determine the mine’s environmental impact.
“That was a pretty complete study. It was good science, it looked a lot at species diversity and population numbers,” said K.J. Metcalf, president of the environmental watchgroup Friends of Admiralty Island since its founding in 1997. The organization has around 400 members, and is primarily concerned with the island’s ecological health.
Last year a field reconnaissance study conducted by FAI tested for the levels of 11 metals in Hawk Inlet, including arsenic, copper, lead, nickel and zinc.
“We found elevated numbers of metals in everything we tested,” Metcalf reported.
Sediment in the inlet and in Piledriver Cove was found to have higher contaminant levels than what was measured by the pre-mining baseline. Samples testing further found area shellfish to have bioaccumulated relatively high levels of heavy metals.
The study was not as comprehensive as the original 1981 baseline, which Metcalf felt ought to be replicated. But the reconnaissance study did determine a change had taken place since then, and indicated these increased levels may be due to activity at nearby Greens Creek mine.
A few miles southeast of Hawk Inlet, the mine was given special permission to operate within the Admiralty National Monument area by the 1980 Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA).
FAI issued a report of its findings in October, and partly on the strength of these Howard turned to the state for assistance. He was not pleased with its response, a letter from the lieutenant governor’s office received mid-January.
“They’re having a million excuses,” Howard said. He also contacted the mine’s operator about his concerns, and had a similar reaction.
“Their only response has been that they’re doing what the state requires of them,” said Howard.
Hecla Mining Company owns and operates the Greens Creek mine, which at the northern end of Admiralty is considered one of the largest and lowest-cost primary silver mines in the world. Operations at Greens Creek began in 1989, operating for about four years before production was suspended in April 1993. The mine site was recommissioned and operations resumed three years later.
The mine’s operations are an important source of jobs and revenue for the wider Juneau area. In 2014 it produced 7.8 million ounces of silver at a cash cost of around $22.5 million, after byproduct credits. Production for last year is expected to be 7.3 million ounces.
Hecla reports its mine holds current proven and probable silver reserves of 94 million ounces, along with reserves of gold, zinc and lead. There is an additional measured and indicated resource of 9.1 million ounces of silver, and inferred resources of 46.8 million ounces.
Because of its unique position in the Admiralty National Monument, ANILCA provided that a lease be made available for the Greens Creek operation provided certain conditions are met. Among these is the stipulation that use of the site would not cause “irreparable harm” to the Misty Fjords or Admiralty Island National Monument.
As a result of this, surveys of marine life in and around Hawk Inlet and baseline studies of heavy metals in the local environment were conducted, such as the one in 1981. The operation of Greens Creek has ostensibly been held to a higher standard as a result, and proponents of adopting more conservative mining practices in Canada have used it as an example.
For example, filter pressed tailings from the milling process are backfilled in the mine and deposited in a surface dry-stack pile near Hawk Inlet, rather than submerged underwater in ponds as is done at Red Chris. In its 2014 report put out last summer, Hecla estimated the added 201,373 cubic yards of material to its tailings facility, equal to around 343,013 tons. Unsalable metals concentrate is meanwhile transported from the mill to the Hawk Inlet area, where it is stored until it can be shipped off-site.
Speaking for the company as its manager for government and community relations, Mike Satre said they were aware of Angoon’s concerns.
“We are in a very sensitive place,” he acknowledged, going on to explain what measures the mine takes to limit its environmental impact. As part of its permitting, the company conducts monitoring and sampling, including quarterly seawater sediment and biomonitoring sampling in Hawk Inlet, which gets reported to the state.
“The results of all that sampling is public record, it’s available online,” Satre pointed out.
On the DNR website, documentation spanning the mine’s audits, permits, environmental impact statement, and annual reports are available to review. The U.S. Forest Service and DNR conduct periodic inspections, the latest available of which cite no action items necessary.
In the final EIS prepared by USFS in 2013 for Green Creek’s tailings disposal facility expansion, it noted there were no federally listed endangered species within the project area, and a consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service that year concluded the mine would not likely adversely affect humpback whale and stellar sea lion populations in the area. Similarly, a record of decision found “no effect” on green sturgeon, chinook salmon, sockeye salmon, coho salmon, and steelhead.
“All that being said, we certainly do recognize the City of Angoon has concerns,” Satre added. He said the community is owed a response to its questions, and Satre had been working the past couple of days to encourage state officials to do so.
Until then, Angoon will be looking askance at its shellfish. Howard explained that for the community there, a disruption to subsistence can have a pronounced impact on residents’ way of life.
“In Angoon on any given day you’ll see somebody out here trying to get some food,” he mentioned.
Without access to traditional seafoods, he pointed out residents had to rely more on processed foods available at the local market.
“What do you do?” Howard asked. “Processed foods aren’t healthy for you, and it turns out the foods we’ve been living on for a long time aren’t healthy for us either, anymore.”
“It’s certainly a concern that underlines all of our work,” commented Hardcastle. At the moment, SBB has not become involved in Hawk Inlet issue, and will wait until more facts come out.
Hardcastle pointed out the Greens Creek mining operation is unlike those across the border, and that it has been a model for the industry with its dry stack tailings.
“If that mine is not, I think we’re facing even more concerns than we are in the transboundary region,” she said.
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