The B.C. Government has granted Osisko Development Corporation an operating permit under the Mines Act for its Cariboo Gold Mine in Wells.
After 13 months of the permitting process, including a technical review and collaboration with First Nations, the province approved the underground mine project.
A news release from the B.C. Government says approximately 634 people will be employed during construction. The project will be able to process around 1.1 million tonnes of gold-bearing ore per year. It will include underground mining over 16 years, ore milling at the Quesnel River Mine which is approximately 58 kilometres southeast of Quesnel, storage of waste rock at the Bonanza Ledge Mine near Barkerville and a transmission line from the Quesnel area to the mine.
A permit under the Environmental Management Act (EMA) for the project is under consideration within the Ministry of Environment and Parks with a decision expected in the coming weeks. That permit would provide authority for the company to introduce wastes into the environment while protecting public health and the environment. The EMA regulates industrial and municipal waste discharge, pollution, hazardous waste and contained site remediation.
This is the first project entirely assessed under the new 2018 Environmental Assessment Act that has been granted a Mines Act permit.
The news release noted the Environmental Assessment Office completed its assessment of the mine project with extensive consultation from experts, First Nations, including the Lhtako Dené, Xatśūll and Williams Lake First Nations, government agencies and the public.
The Xatśūll First Nation has recently called for the permitting process to be paused until their concerns are met.
“Xatśūll has acted in good faith in our discussions, and we will not stand down until we are treated respectfully as partners and acknowledged as Aboriginal title holders and decision-makers in relation to the Project, as we rightfully should be,” said Xatśūll Kukpi7 (Chief) Rhonda Phillips in a news release earlier this month.
Some of the concerns Xatśūll outlined when they notified the province of their lack of consent for the project in 2023 were:
- Safety of District of Wells drinking water,
- Water treatment/water management,
- Water quality,
- Fish and fish habitats,
- Vegetation, ecosystems, wildlife and habitat,
- Human health and ecological risk
Those concerns include waste water discharge into water sources such as Jack of Clubs Lake, Lowhee Creek and Rudy Creek. The Bonanza Ledge mine, which has ceased operations, was acquired by Osisko in 2020, it was fined earlier this year for discharging waste water into Lowhee Creek from April 2021 to November 2022. At the time Osisko said it was caused by historic issues with the site and it had been working to address those failures since it acquired the site.
They also have concerns about the safety of the southern mountain caribou population, which the province of B.C. labels as endangered. Their letter in 2023 says things like transmission line clearing and year-round access will further put the caribou at risk.
Xatśūll said they were told their concerns would be addressed but over the year of working with the environmental assessment office, they were unsatisfied that their concerns were addressed in a meaningful way.
Osisko Development said it has made reasonable efforts to reach an agreement with the nation over the past two years and has offered financial benefits similar to what was agreed to by other Indigenous communities.
The Lhtako Dene Nation said in a release earlier this month that Osisko has meaningfully engaged with them and has worked collaboratively on projects surrounding salmon and caribou conservation.
"We support and look forward to the sustainable development of the Cariboo Gold," the release said.
The Environmental Assessment Act was modernized to enhance public confidence, transparency and meaningful participation, to advance reconciliation with First Nations, and to deliver stronger environmental protections, while supporting sustainable economic development.
With files from Andie Mollins, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
