Richard Gleeson
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Jan 25/02) - Plagued by ongoing funding problems, a contract snag, and a jurisdictional dispute between governments, the clean-up of Giant mine is now coping with a rapid turnover in the leadership of the team responsible for overseeing it.

The Royal Oak project team, responsible for overseeing the clean-up of Giant Mine, will be without its two top bureaucrats for the foreseeable future.

Royal Oak senior advisor Dave Nutter retired last fall. At that time his second-in- command, project leader Neil Thompson, assumed Nutter's job on top of his own. Thompson left for a job with the Department of National Defence in December.

The Royal Oak project team is a creation of the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs. Regional director General Bob Overvold referred all questions about the leadership changes to Nutter.

Working on contract, Nutter is assuming control of the clean up from his home in New Brunswick until two replacements are found, something he said will not happen for at least another two months.

In the interim, Nutter is working from his home, flying into Yellowknife a few times each month.

To avoid a financial limit federal contracting regulations place on contracting of services from civil servants who have recently left the government, Nutter is being contracted through SRK.

SRK is the consulting company that is contracted to provide technical advice on the clean up of the mine. Nutter said SRK is not receiving any compensation for using him as a contractor.

In the interim, Malcolm Robb, on loan from his regular job as manager of DIAND's mineral development division, is heading up the Royal Oak Project team's Yellowknife office.

Before Robb arrived, no one in the office was senior enough to have signing authority.

"Malcolm's helping out there, and on a technical basis and providing leadership and guidance to the staff that are still there," Nutter said from his home.

Nutter said his job is to advise Overvold and associate regional director general Lorne Tricoteux with advice on management decisions the project requires and help for a search for replacements for himself and Thompson.

The senior staff turnover has had little effect on the clean up of the mine, Nutter said.

"I don't think they've had any real effect on the project. On the technical side, a lot of the work being done on a day-to-day basis is being done by our technical advisor, which is SRK," said Nutter.

"I would say nothing has been derailed by Neil's departure or mine."