funding announced to clean up montague gold mines site near dartmouth
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montague mines in dartmouth is one of the contaminated sites in nova scotia that the province is financially liable for.
tim krochak
/
the chronicle herald
cleanup of the contaminated montague mines site near dartmouth is likely to begin later this year with $33.4 million in funding from the federal and provincial governments.
an environmental site assessment confirmed the soil at the mines site, which was mined for gold from 1865 to 1940, is contaminated with mercury and arsenic.
the site is on the montague road in the community of montague gold mines, some three kilometres north of dartmouth and off highway 107.
“the start of remediation at the historic gold mine site in montague mines marks a major step forward in protecting both the environment and public health,” provincial public works minister fred tilley said thursday.
“this work reflects our dedication to responsible environmental stewardship and our commitment to addressing the legacy of past industrial activity.”
that legacy is one of contamination and possible health concerns attributed to potential arsenic exposure at the montague mines, one of 68 former mine locations identified by the province to be remediated.
the contamination at the montague site is primarily found in an area of about 147 hectares (363 acres) where mine tailings were disposed.
the goal of the project is to return the land and wetlands to a productive habitat similar to what it was before mining activities.
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the cleanup will include excavating contaminated soil to a depth of two metres and placing the soil in impermeable containment cells that will be constructed on site.
the estimated volume of material expected to be contained within the cells is 120,000 cubic metres.
a treatment system will also be required to collect and treat any leachate from the constructed containment cells. clean backfill will replace removed soil.
the tailings pond of the former montague gold mine is seen near dartmouth on tuesday, july 28, 2020.
tim krochak
/
the chronicle herald
a low-permeability cover will be placed on areas of the site with lower levels of contamination to keep precipitation from creating contaminated runoff.
these areas will also be covered with clean backfill.
the government of nova scotia is spending $18,480,000 on the project and the federal government is kicking in $15 million through the green infrastructure stream of the investing in canada infrastructure program.
“it is crucial that we uphold canada’s world-leading environmental standards by addressing the contamination on the montague mines site,” said braedon clark, liberal mp for sackville-bedford-preston.
“this project will promote long-term environmental sustainability on both the site of the former mine and downstream.”
the work is expected to take up to three years, followed by long-term monitoring.
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the sites to be cleaned up are used by hikers and atv riders.
a similar cleanup is planned for a former mine site in goldenville, near sherbrooke, but that project is likely to lag about a year behind the montague mines remediation project.
the provincial government recently estimated the cost to clean up all the contaminated sites in the province to be about $600 million, well over $300 million of which will be needed for the four- to seven-year cleanup project at boat harbour, near pictou landing first nation.
for decades, wastewater effluent from the nearby northern pulp mill was dumped into boat harbour.
the estimates to clean up abandoned mine sites is close to $150 million, nearly $65 million of which is targeted for montague and goldenville mines remediation.
acting auditor general terry spicer five years ago found the provincial government lacked a co-ordinated approach for assessing and managing risks for contaminated sites and that there was no oversight body responsible for creating a provincial approach to ensure appropriate action is taken on potential and known contaminated sites the province is responsible for.
the province reviews and updates estimates for the reclamation of abandoned mine sites every year.
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since 1991, provincial legislation in nova scotia requires mining companies to provide funds for reclamation, such as cash or bonds before mining begins, to cover full reclamation costs.
this ensures sites can be effectively reclaimed even if a company defaults, preventing an abandoned or contaminated site.
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