Yellowknife (Mar 24/06) - Spring 2006 will bring the Miramar Con Mine site a little closer to being cleaned up.

This means the 340-hectare site just outside of town could be used for industrial development as soon as 2010, the year the closure plan is set to be complete.

Mayor Gord Van Tighem isn’t satisfied with leaving the site zoned for industrial activities.

“The city’s objective in any discussion is to demand the highest level of remediation for the site,” he said.

“The site will be in the middle of the city in the future,” said Van Tighem.

“We know the city is looking for more residential space. We’re committed to returning the site to the industrial standard,” countered Scott Stringer, general manager of Northern operations for Miramar.

The soil contaminant standards for residential areas are higher than for land zoned as industrial.

John Hull, mining consultant for Miramar, said there is land to the north, west, and south of the site that had not been mined and could be used for residential development.

The plans to close the Miramar Con gold mine have been in the works since the early 1980s, said Hull. He and representatives from Miramar held the last public information meeting on March 16.

So far, 21 out of 63 buildings on the site have been demolished. The rest will be gone by 2007, including the historic Robertson Shaft.

Almost all of the arsenic sludge and calcine deposits - by-products of gold mining - have been removed and are being treated.

During the summer there will be continued testing of soil and water on the site, as well as several more openings capped.

The Negus and Con ponds will be covered with gravel and sand, as there is too much arsenic in the soil to be used in the future.

The estimated cost of the project is $9 million. This number could change, depending on soil samples and other variables dependent on site testing.

Stringer said Miramar is committed to the site for several years because any water that needs to be treated must go through the water treatment plant at the site.

The mine itself is currently being flooded as part of the reclamation project. This process started in 2003 and could take up to 20 years.

The water levels and contamination must still be tested, as Miramar was unable to get samples last year.

The final stages of reclamation will involve revegetating the area.

Miramar mine is one of the oldest gold mines in Canada. It was in operation for more than 65 years.