Promo tourism pictures for the town of Likely, BC.
The Mount Polley sludge mine tailings disaster could be with us for decades! Imperial Metals, the mine operators say they will make it right. Do they really think they can? Do we believe they can? The town of Likely, BC, might as well have been destroyed too. And the Caribou Regional District has declared a local state of emergency. And so far, it seems no one even has a clue what to do.
In the Kalamazoo river bitumen spill, at which cleaning up has been ongoing for years now, much of it was very simple. You drove the cleanup equipment up to the riverbank and basically started vacuuming the black sludge. Even then Enbridge crews have been called back again and again because the black tar bitumen lies on the bottom of the river and continues to seep into the Kalamazoo fresh water stream!
In the area of this tailings dam breach, there are NO roads beside the river! How do you get equipment up there? Can you vacuum up those tons of sludge? Hazeltine was a creek, no boats could navigate it! There is literally nothing that can be used to make this right.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has ordered Canada's largest pipeline company to return to the Kalamazoo river to dredge areas where the agency believes remains of the heavy bitumen fossil fuel have collected. The March 2013 order came nine months after most of the 56-kilometre stretch of the river affected by the spill was reopened to the public.
The Kalamazoo incident is the largest onland spill in the history of the U.S., and has already cost Enbridge more than $1 billion.
Do we really think there is enough equipment and expertise in the world to 'make it right' in our streams and lakes around the wilderness of BCs rough terrain? Will Quesnel Lake be able to support the sockeye salmon fishery? Will these toxic chemicals eventually seep into the Fraser River? Or will the BC government tell us it's all okay because we have lots of fish farms instead?
The CEO of Imperial Metals could not even tell us what chemicals or heavy metals were even IN that tailings pond. If they are used in the mining operation shouldn't he and WE know what they are? Shouldn't Energy and Mines Minister Bill Bennett already know too? If there is an investigation into this, be aware that Bill Bennett will steer it away from any chance of finding himself irresponsible for being oblivious to his own ministry!
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| Hazeltine Creek, once two meters wide. (photo Global News) |
This is incredible. Big business in BC has had it their way for years with little supervision, and no accounting for their actions. It is time they were called to pay up. And the so called guardians of our wonderful British Columbia, the BC Liberal party and everyone who deserted their due diligence in this should be turfed out of office and an election called to replace these corrupt and incompetent people!
Watch for this company to go bankrupt to avoid responsibility and costs. And they probably just don't have the money to do the job anyway. Leaving the bill in the hands of British Columbians! Criminal charges for the executives must be considered, and the MLAs who allowed these companies to police themselves, Bill Bennett, Christy Clark and Mary Polak, should go too. But do not expect it when they'll be the ones controlling any future fallout.
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| Devastation - (photo Global News) |
Do we just seal off the area like Chernobyl and pretend it isn't there? Bill Bennett says he will now go around and check mine tailings ponds. From a helicopter so he can make it back to the trough to have dinner with more mining executives? Staples have probably sold out of brown envelopes.
And Enbridge is waiting in the wings to get going with their Northern Gateway Project in BC. And in case you were wondering, an Enbridge executive once said they would form another separate company to run the pipeline. Why? So they can just let that company declare bankruptcy in the case of a tar spill and step away from the responsibility? They don't want another Kalamazoo river to deal with. Some think so.
What happens in the Mount Polley region in the immediate future will be a portent to all of BC about mining and pipeline projects.
And a warning to the people of BC who are standing by while some businesses are getting away with the murder of our trees, lakes, rivers and even towns and used the argument that it was good for our economy. If it costs taxpayers 1 billion dollars will that be good for us?
Our government trusted the mining company to manage their operations.
We trusted our government to oversee how they were doing it.
Both have mismanaged the job and betrayed our trust.
Time to step up and speak out, folks. Action is required.
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addenda:Substances listed as disposed off on-site in Imperial Metals’ 2013 Mount Polley Mine report -
- Phosphorus – 41,640 tonnes
- Manganese – 20,988 tonnes
- Copper – 18,413 tonnes
- Vanadium – 5,047 tonnes
- Zinc – 2,169 tonnes
- Cobalt – 475 tonnes
- Nickel – 326 tonnes
- Antimony – 14 tonnes
- Arsenic – 406,122 kg
- Lead – 177,041 kg
- Selenium – 46,136 kg
- Cadmium – 6,487 kg
- Mercury – 3,114 kg
addenda 2
In a recent statement that showcased her totally stupidity, Environment Minister Mary Polak, said about Imperial Metals and the mine, "They will have to pay, it is the law." Literally NO understanding of the law and bankruptcy. They have only 10 million in insurance coverage, and once that is gone, the only alternative is stepping away from the mess, leaving BC taxpayers with what could amount to a billion dollars in costs. The BC Liberals are guilty of allowing this catastrophe to happen for lack of supervision.
I believe every word you have written Cater. The Liberals only do what is best for their pockets. Turf them all out.
ReplyDeleteAnother disaster that could have been prevented if the Liberal Government had been on their toes. They all should be run out of the Province. Tarred and feathered.
ReplyDelete