MACKENZIE VALLEY
Inspection reports spanning nearly a year have revealed erosion and risk to wildlife along the Mackenzie Valley fibre optic cable construction route.

A section of fibre optic cable is exposed near Campbell Creek south of Inuvik in May 2015. - photo courtesy of the Department of Lands

Expected to be complete by August of this year, the $84-million project will see installation of 1,154 km of fiber optic cable from Jean Marie River to Inuvik, providing communities across the Mackenzie Valley and Beaufort Delta access to high-speed Internet service.

The territorial government announced Northern Lights General Partnership, a consortium of Ledcor Developments Ltd. And Northwestel won the P3 contract to build, finance, operate and maintain the fibre link in November 2014.

Signs of trouble surfaced a year ago when reports the Department of Lands submitted to the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board referenced discarded timber and unsafe fuel storage at construction sites, such as hoses left hanging with no containment precautions in the event of a spill.

"In the leaning timber there are salvageable pieces of wood which must be pulled out/cut down respectively and salvaged," a Jan. 23 report stated. "All non-salvageable wood ... and leaning trees must be cut down and lain flat to reduce the hazard they pose."

May and August inspections found more environmental concerns.

At the time, 95 per cent of the trench from Campbell Creek, south of Inuvik, to the end of the fibre link was not fully covered, with 10 inches exposed in some sections. Likewise, the cable was visible at 10 creek crossings with spring run off causing erosion in the trenches and silt build up at lower elevations.

Significant erosion was also cited between Norman Wells and Fort Good Hope, where erosion was found to have loosened cable boxes, creating pools of water which have caused boxes to tilt and float.

An eroded trench three miles south of Fort Good Hope had spread over an area of 40 metres, burying vegetation, covering the winter road and entering the treeline.

"This area poses a risk to wildlife (e.g. broken legs) and has a risk of eroding in future if it is not back-filled," the report said.

Orders were given to Ledcor to address the issues following multiple inspections. Gullies and exposed cables were to be buried by September 2015, with all other infractions remedied by March of this year.

However, in another report submitted Jan. 11 it was determined remediation plans had not been adhered to.

"At this point, remediation work conducted over the summer and fall and approved remediation plan are being disregarded or not thoroughly followed with," it said.

Department of Lands spokesperson Leslie Campbell stated in an e-mail that Ledcor has completed the requested backfilling of trenches and holes around drill shots and installed water diversion berms and silt fences in the Beaufort Delta prior to the September deadline.

She added inspections are conducted on a weekly basis.

To date, Ledcor has not been reprimanded or issued a stop-work order.

Former Sahtu MLA and Norman Wells resident Norman Yakeleya said residents in the community have not expressed concerns about the cable construction. He said because jobs are so scarce in the area, most are just grateful for work.

"We need work in our communities and fiber optic is bringing a lot of jobs to people who need to work and need money," he told News/North. "If we didn't have that we would be in a very dire straights here . So I'm not too sure if people want to bite the hand that's feeding them."

Yakeleya said because it is the first time a cable has been run across the territory, the construction company may be unfamiliar with the terrain, which would require some troubleshooting.

"In practicality, when you're doing it for the first time in this situation, you're learning your lessons," he said.

A representative from Ledcor could not be reached by press time.