Dane Gibson
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Nov 12/99) - The City put the cart before the horse when they said they would allow Miramar Mining Corp. to truck ore from Giant mine to Con, according to the public school board.

Miramar has indicated they want to haul up to 20 dump-truck loads of ore between the two mines a day. The route along Taylor Road is what concerns the board. The trucks will pass right by William Macdonald and Allain St-Cyr schools to get to a connector road Miramar is planning to construct.

Even though Yellowknife Mayor Dave Lovell has said the proposal won't significantly impact the area, trustee Bob Patterson disagrees.

"Even one close call between a big truck and one of our students is something I would call significant," said Patterson.

Trustee Don MacDonald urged the board to ensure the Safe School Policy is adhered to.

"We're trusted to ensure the safety of students, not just in school, but getting to and from as well," said MacDonald.

Trustee Wendy Bisaro said they were not consulted by the City of Yellowknife and there are many questions they'd like answered, such as how will the loads be secured? Will arsenic be trucked to Con for processing? How much noise and congestion will the trucks add to the area?

All trustees raised concerns and indicated they want to set up a meeting between the school board and the City to get all the facts.

"The City has not given us the courtesy of asking for our opinions on this matter," said Bisaro.

Despite assurances last week it would, Miramar had yet to contact any school officials about the proposed route said Coun. Kevin O'Reilly Monday.

O'Reilly encouraged the company to contact the school board, "or they will not get my support for their trucking proposal."