Britannia Mine Remediation Project

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Britannia Mine Remediation Project
Britannia Shoreline Public Meeting June 25, 2008
www.britanniamine.ca
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Why are we here?

• Provide a brief overview of where we are at
• Engage members of the community about where we
  are going.
• Build on significant stakeholder consultation
  which contributed to the Overall Remediation Plan

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Why are we here?

• Focus is on the Britannia shoreline and
  eventually setting resource conservation
  objectives (RCO).

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Agenda

• Welcome and Introductions
• Overview of the Britannia Remediation Project
• Summary of Environmental Monitoring
• Resource Conservation Objectives
• Participation and Feedback
• Closing Questions and Answers

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Whats the Problem?

• Britannia Mine - the largest point source of
  metal pollution in North America discharging to a
  marine environment until October 2005
• Naturally occurring metal sulphide orebody

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Environmental Issues

• Acid Rock Drainage (ARD) was discharging from the
  mine (5million m3/year) - copper, zinc, cadmium,
  pH3.5
• Metal-contaminated groundwater
• Alluvial Fan of Britannia Creek
• Waste dump leaching
• Metal-contaminated surface water (run-off)
• All the above impact aquatic life in Howe Sound
  and local waterways
• Squamish River salmon run

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4100 Level Mine Entrance
Britannia Creek
Mill Building
Britannia Creek Alluvial Fan (Fan
Area)
BC Museum of Mining
Highway 99
Concentrate Wharf
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3D Cutaway of Britannia Mine
Jane Basin
Mineral Creek
Victoria Shaft
2200 Portal
Britannia Creek
2700 Portal
2700L
4100 L
Britannia Beach
10 Shaft
4100 Plug
Howe Sound
4100 Portal
Mine Levels defined in feet measured downwards
from highest elevation in mine
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Provinces Remedial Concept

• Inflow Diversions
• Collection/storage of ARD
• Treatment of ARD
• Deep outfall
• Groundwater capture/treatment
• Surface water management
• Contaminated soil management
• Monitoring Risk Assessment

Prevention Inflow diversion
Collection (Plug installed in 2200 level In
2001 by UBC/CERM3)
Management of contaminated waste rock and
groundwater
Treatment of mine drainage
Use of mine void as storage/ balancing reservoir
Plug with control valve
Mill
Howe Sound
New Deep Outfall
Management of contaminated groundwater
Assessment of contaminated sediments
(Environment Canada)
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Overall Remediation Plan (ORP)

• Prepared by Golder on behalf of Ministry of
  Agriculture and Land (MAL) in 2003
• Input from Crown Land Restoration Branch,
  technical consultants, BC and Federal regulators
  and project stakeholders
• Strategy evolved from years of study and
  assessment since mine closure in 1974

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ORP Objectives

1. Reduce discharge of harmful substances (metals)
   to habitable areas and aquatic communities
2. Protect, sustain and promote recovery
3. Achieve and maintain acceptable levels of risk to
   health and safety for humans and other
   terrestrial organisms
4. Implement in a timely and cost effective manner

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Review of Progress

• Immediate Actions
• 2200 Plug
• Removal of Mill Building Concentrate Pile
• Removal of lower settling pond sediment
• Removal and stabilisation of sedimentation pond
• Removal of mill slope soils
• Ground and storm water interception in Fan Area
• Surface water diversions in Jane Basin
• First stage of monitoring and assessment
• Now a potential action surface groundwater
  control in lieu

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Review of Progress

• Committed Actions
• Mine water collection and storage
• Mine water treatment plant
• New deep water outfall
• WTP sludge disposal
• Stage 2 of monitoring and assessment

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Review of Progress

• Potential Actions
• Additional Fan Area groundwater interception
• Additional surface water diversions
• Remediate additional mine wastes and portals
• Additional Fan Area surface and storm water
  management, collection and treatment
• Remediate Fan Area soils
• Remediate Fan Area inter-tidal zone
• Some completed/in progress. Review ongoing
• Underway
• Contingent on risk assessment findings

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Additional ORP Requirements

• Environmental remediation is primary focus of the
  ORP, however additional objectives include
• Mitigation of public health and safety risks
• Compliance with Section 10.6 and 10.7 of the BC
  mine Code

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ORP Status Summary

• Immediate remedial actions have all been
  implemented (excl. Mill Slopes)
• Committed remedial actions have all been
  implemented
• Potential remedial actions
• Most implemented
• Remainder under review

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ORP Status Summary

• Potential remedial actions ongoing/under
  consideration
• 2200 Level Waste Dump Hazardous Waste identified
  and remedial plan in progress to be implemented
  this year
• 2200 Level Waste Dump drainage improvements to
  be implemented this year
• Beta Portal discharge diversion (potential
  diversion back into the mine)

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Risk Assessment

• Screening-level risk assessment was used to
  identify environmental risk and prepare ORP
• A more detailed aquatic and terrestrial
  monitoring programme and risk assessment was
  proposed (Tier 2 Assessment)
• The detailed assessment would be used to refine
  potential risks and select any appropriate
  additional remedial actions
• Current status defining Resource Conservation
  Objectives

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• Planning out risk assessment?
• Large site
• Mine workings that exist across 2 watersheds

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• Why a Risk Assessment Plan?
• Large site
• Mine workings that exist across 2 watersheds
• Ore processing area located along Howe Sound

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Furry Creek Watershed

• Limited surface water sampling
• Water chemistry generally good.
• Limited remedial work
• Recommended that a Problem Formulation/Sampling
  Analysis Plan be prepared (first part of a risk
  assessment)

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Britannia Creek Watershed

• Dominant influence on Britannia Cr water quality
  is from Jane Creek
• Some waste materials removed planning underway
  to remove Haz Waste at 2200 level.
• Jane Creek drains a naturally mineralized area.

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Britannia Creek Watershed
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Britannia Creek Watershed

• RA not likely to contribute to near-term remedial
  actions
• Natural mineralization of the area may constrain
  practicability of remediation to plausible RA
  endpoints
• Near-term
• Investigate sources
• Remediation of selected potential sources

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Fan Area

• Monitoring indicates
• Contaminant concentrations in nearshore
  groundwater are high
• Biological assessment and testing significant
  adverse localized effects
• Risk assessment at present is not seen to play a
  major role until sources are controlled
• Development of Resource Conservation Objectives
  will aid in defining remedial endpoints at this
  time and will form a basis for future RA.
• How clean is clean enough?

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Environmental Monitoring FindingsBritannia
Shoreline

• 3 main program components
• Marine water quality
• Nearshore groundwater quality (porewater)
• Shoreline ecology

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(No Transcript)
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Station Locations
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Marine Surface Water Chemistry - Intertidal
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Marine Surface Water - Subtidal
0.002 mg/L chronic WQG 0.003 mg/L maximum WQG
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Pore Water Chemistry
0.002 mg/L chronic WQG 0.003 mg/L maximum WQG
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Pore Water Toxicity- Mytilus galloprovincialis
2005
2006
(ns)
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Intertidal Community Structure
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Intertidal Community Structure
2006
Spring
Spring
Summer
Summer
Coverage (Mean ? SD)
Fall
Fall
Reach BB-6
Reach BB-3
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Intertidal Community Structure
Reach BB-3 (Spring 2006)
Reach BB-6 (Spring 2006)
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Caged Bivalve Study
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Caged Bivalve Study - 2005
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Resource Conservation Objectives

• How good is good enough?
• More often thought of in terms of chemical
  concentrations
• Can also be expressed in ecological terms as a
  shoreline community condition and/or function

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Resource Conservation Objectives

• How good is good enough?
• Example percent cover by mussels and barnacles
• Community interests and values assist scientists
  in defining what is good enough

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Resource Conservation Objectives

• Shoreline Use
• Human use of the shoreline
• Ecological use of the shoreline
• What is important to you?
• Community aspirations should influence resource
  conservation objectives and remedial measures to
  attain those

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Resource Conservation Objectives

• In addition to community values, there are
  regulatory requirements.
• Ministry of Environment, Environment Canada,
  Fisheries and Oceans Canada
• Agency consultation will take place, following
  community consultation (projected for Fall 2008)
• Agency input to the project has been ongoing
  through the TAC
• Agency representatives in attendance tonight.

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Now its your turn

• Questionnaire available here and online
• http//websurvey.golder.com/wsb.dll/lnikl/Britanni
  aShorelineConsultation.htm
• Scientists and engineers working on the project
  are present this evening to help you
• Please review the posters and other materials,
  ask them questions, formulate your thoughts and
  tell us what you think!