Yellowknife (Apr 28/03) - David Long has been mining the public for input lately, mostly hunting for unturned rocks.

As general counsellor for Miramar Mining, Long knows consultation can be as good as gold for his company in the long haul -- especially in the Kitikmeot, where plans for a new mine are in the works.

"It has to be a win-win situation," he said. "If it doesn't work for us we won't want to build a mine. If it doesn't work for them they won't want to support us in building a mine," he said.

Miramar, a Vancouver-based company, is aiming to open the first gold mine on Inuit mineral and surface rights land.

The Doris North mine in the Hope Bay region is scheduled to begin production in 2005. The start-up date assumes Miramar meets a number of obligations set forth by the Nunavut Impact Review Board (NIRB), the Inuit Land Claims Agreement and a number of other regulatory bodies.

Through consultation with members of the community, Long is confident the obligations will be met.

"It was a very helpful process," he said. "It gives everybody a chance to answer these questions."

Ready for impact

In particular, Long and Miramar face both cultural and environmental challenges over the development of Doris North.

Currently the company is in the process of finalizing its environmental impact statement as outlined by the NIRB.

Before development can begin, said Elizabeth Suluk Copland, chair of NIRB, a final draft of the environmental impact statement must be submitted.

Following that, the board will review the application to grant final approval.

Copland said she expects that to be done in September.

If all that is done on schedule, Long said Miramar is hopeful to bring construction supplies to the site on the 2004 ice road.

The issue that has taken most precedence is over caribou migration in the area and what impact the new mine may have on herds.

Concerns centre around a small lake that will be used to collect tailings that is also a potential water source for the animals.

"We don't think there is a risk. We've done substantial research on caribou migration and we don't think there is very much caribou migration in the region around the lake," said Long.

As well, the levels of pollutants in the water and the length of time a migrating caribou may spend at the lake does not pose a significant risk to making the animal sick, said Long.

Despite those assurances, there are still concerns of contaminating wildlife in the region.

The communities have requested that a fence be constructed around the lake to keep caribou away from the water.

Jeremy Ford, community mining advisor with the Department of Sustainable Development, said the concerns are warranted.

"Inuit depend on the land for survival," he said.

Long added that the company is considering the feasibility of building a barrier to prevent access to the lake.

On the environmental side, Long said he is confident that all the outstanding issues will be resolved.

"We don't have anything that we would call environmental deal breakers," he said. "If the environment is protected to everybody's satisfaction I think they are in favour of it."

To meet the 2005 production launch, a strict time frame has to be adhered to because of shipping schedules.

"A two-month delay on one end could mean a year delay on the other end," said Long.

The nearly $100-million project, including development and possible revenue, has a variety of economic benefits to the region.

An estimated 150 jobs that will be created at the new mine. Of those, Miramar is targeting 69 for Inuit workers.

"Many of the jobs are for people with experience or expertise and many of the Inuit people don't have that training," said Long.

However, through an Inuit impact benefit agreement with the Kitikmeot Inuit Association (KIA), training will be implemented to provide Inuit with those skills.

Although the life of the mine is only projected to be two years, depending on gold prices, the project is expected to dig up $60 million in revenue.

Public consultations in the Kitikmeot held at the beginning of the month aimed to answer five key questions:

1. Does Miramar's Environmental Impact Statement conform to NIRB guidelines?

2. When should the final draft of the statement be filed?

3. What major issues have not been adequately addressed?

4. What other major organizations need to be involved in the process that may have been overlooked?

5. What other responsibilities should we be asked to fulfil?