Doug Ashbury
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Jun 30/00) - It's like a teeth kicking. Again.

That's how the Canadian Auto Workers Local 2304 union feels about news Ottawa trimmed this year's Giant Mine cleanup budget.

The union was hoping to get some reclamation jobs for its remaining out-of-work members.

About 20 of the local's 200 former Giant mine workers remain without work after Royal Oak Mines went bankrupt. Under a deal with a receiver, the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development acquired the gold mine last year and immediately sold it to Con Mine owner Miramar Mining. Miramar is milling Giant ore at Con. Since last October's layoff 72 Giant Mine workers (Local 2304 members and staff) were hired back by Miramar.

Reclamation jobs were a carrot waved, said Local 2304 President Marc Danis.

"They (DIAND) promised us those jobs. They are not going to live up to that commitment."

Danis adds that initially there was talk of nine jobs, then it went to three. Ultimately, he said one member would get some part-time reclamation work.

"This was our last shot at (reclamation jobs). The cleanup doesn't seem to be a big issue. I don't see anything happening now for two or three years."

DIAND Minister Robert Nault, in a letter last December to Local 2304, said DIAND officials were working to involve union members in reclamation activity.

"Now, his department has budgeted only $3 million for reclamation work this year with most, if not all, to be spent at the Colomac Mine site," Local 2304 said in a statement Wednesday.

The federal government revealed recently it will spend a third less on the clean-up of Colomac and Giant mines this year.

"They'll have some cash to continue with the surface remediation (at Giant), but they're going to be short on funds to continue with the research work that's being done with the arsenic problem underground," Jim Moore, assistant deputy minister of DIAND's Northern Affairs Program, told News/North recently.

Surface cleanup at Giant is estimated to cost $16.3 million. Removing underground arsenic could go as high as $250 million.

Because it presents a more pressing environmental hazard, Moore said the lion's share of this year's funding will be devoted to Colomac, located about 200 kilometres northwest of Yellowknife.

Of DIAND's 2000-01 $4.8 billion budget, $154.4 million is for the Northern Affairs program.