The B.C. government has issued a consent order to allow the Springer Pit expansion project at Mount Polley to go ahead.
The decision was made by Environment and Parks Minister Tamara Davidson and Mining and Critical Minerals Minister Jagrup Brar, and is pending permit applications under the Mines Act and Environmental Management Act.
Mount Polley is an open-pit copper and gold mine roughly 56 kilometres northeast of Williams Lake.
If all authorizations are received, the expansion would extend the mine's operation to 2033, allowing the deepening of the existing pit and continued discharge of treated water into Quesnel Lake.
Mount Polley was the site of one of the province's worst mining environmental disasters in B.C. history in 2014 when the dam holding back a tailings pond burst, allowing 17 million cubic metres of water and eight million cubic metres of material to spill into nearby waterways, including Quesnel Lake.
The decision agrees with the Environmental Assessment Office's conclusion that the expansion is not likely to have significant impacts because the mine will be kept within its existing footprint.
More to come.
