Abandoned Mines
Abandoned Mines - Overview
Jun 04 2009While definitions vary, abandoned mines are most consistently defined as those mine sites where the mine operator or exploration company has ceased or suspended indefinitely their activities, be that exploration, mining or mine production, without rehabilitating the site. Some parties make a distinction between abandoned mines, those being all mine sites in the condition just described, and orphaned mines, those being abandoned mines for which an owner cannot be identified.
Quebec Auditor General Finds Trouble in Mining Paradise
Apr 03 2009Quebec is one of the world’s most important mining jurisdictions with mineral production of 4.5 to 5.5 billion in 2006 and 2007 respectively. It has also been ranked as the world’s friendliest mining jurisdiction and called a “Mining Paradise” by its Minister of Natural Resources.
Boreal Forest’s Wildlife and Communities Threatened by Impacts from Exploration, Mining – Report
Nov 28 2008
Joint news release with Northwatch: A major new report highlights serious impacts on the Canadian boreal forest from all phases of mining activity, from exploration to closure. Two respected mining industry watchdogs – Northwatch and MiningWatch Canada – say they published The Boreal Below (an all-new and expanded version of a widely circulated 2001 report) in response to growing demand from communities across Canada for information and analysis to help understand the impacts of mining on their lives and livelihoods. It provides a carefully-documented analysis of the social, environmental, and cultural impacts of mining from prospecting to mine closure, as well as an overview of the current situation by province and territory.
Mining’s “Bad Actors” May Finally be Held to Account
Jan 10 2007Ontario Taxpayers Unprotected from Potential Costs of Cleaning Up $584 Million of Contaminated Sites at Inco and Falconbridge Operations
Apr 13 2006MiningWatch Canada learned today, through an application under the Freedom of Information and Privacy Act, that the two mining companies in Ontario with the largest environmental footprint have been allowed to "self-assure" their mining operations against closure and abandonment. The companies themselves estimate the cost of that clean-up as over $585 million.
The Kam Kotia Mine Disaster: Ontario's most notorious mine waste problem
Mar 25 2006[From HighGrader Magazine] It has been labelled the “the worst environmental disaster” in Ontario. It has been criticized by mining opponents as “corporate greed” running wild. Some taxpayers are unhappy that $14 million of their money has been spent - and $14 million more is needed - to restore 500 hectares of land left devastated after the mine closed, the miners moved on to other sites and the shareholders spent their dividends.
Ontario Auditor-General slams Mines Ministry over failure to protect the public
Dec 07 2005Yukon Pushes Weakened Reclamation Policy
Aug 14 2005Abandoned Mines Liability Tops $1 Billion: Watchdog Presents Action Plan to Federal Ministers
Aug 11 2005[News release] On January 11, MiningWatch Canada presented a four point plan for dealing with Canada's abandoned mines crisis to the federal government. Clean-up of sites under federal jurisdiction alone will cost more than $1 billion, but this is the only way to protect people's health, the environment, and local economies from further damage.
Environmentalists challenge government to give Canada's children a birthday gift: Federal Contaminated Sites Program needed
Aug 11 2005[Joint news release] The Sierra Club of Canada and MiningWatch Canada today challenged the federal government to give Canadians a gift they and future generations can truly enjoy; a contaminated sites remediation program. In a jointly released report titled, "TOXICanada: 13 GOOD REASONS TO ESTABLISH A CLEAN CANADA FUND," the groups highlight one contaminated or toxic site in each province and territory across Canada to illustrate the need for a program to deal with them.
