Snap Lake water quality decision now
in hands of Mackenzie Valley board
De Beers says fate of diamond mine
hangs on what board members decide
Stewart Burnett
Northern News Services
Monday, March 30, 2015
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
There are no guidelines governing an acceptable level of pollutants in Snap Lake, meaning a high-stakes decision is wholly at the discretion of the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board.
De Beers Canada is threatening to shut down its Snap Lake Mine if the board does not nearly triple the allowable level of total dissolved solids (TDS), which, in the case of Snap Lake, mainly consists of salts.
Cracks in the walls of the underground mine means groundwater with an extremely high concentration of salt is seeping in and is being pumped to the surface of the lake.
This higher-than-expected discharge led De Beers to request an increase of TDS levels from 350 milligrams per litre to 1,000 milligrams per litre.
The Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board is currently deliberating on the request.
"The board has full discretion to set effluent quality criteria in any licence it issues," said Zabey Nevitt, executive director of the board.
"The board considers any evidence brought through the public hearings process. That may include any relevant local, regional or national standards."
Tom Hoefer, executive director of the NWT and Nunavut Chamber of Mines, told News/North he could not find any hard guidelines for TDS levels in mining operations around the country.
The Mining Association of Canada said TDS is not regulated federally.
In De Beers' original 2004 water licence approval, the board noted that British Columbia set a 150 milligrams per litre guideline for chloride in surface water and that the 350 milligrams per litre would achieve an equivalent quality result.
The 350 milligram figure was originally requested by De Beers under assumed water discharge levels that proved inaccurate.
Although the raised level is expected to change the taste of the water until four to seven years after the closure of the mine in 2028, De Beers maintains the fish will be safe to eat and the water safe to drink.
Todd Slack, negotiator with the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, lobbied the board for a maximum TDS level of 684 milligrams per litre in Snap Lake.
Erica Bonhomme, environmental manager at Snap Lake Mine, told the board that 684 milligrams per litre would result in closure of the mine and cannot be met.
Closing the mine risks almost 800 jobs, 300 of which are for NWT residents.
Mackenzie Land and Water Board Members are expected to reach a decision by the end of the month.
