Mount Polley mine disaster could happen again if laws don’t change: report

WILLIAMS LAKE (NEWS 1130) – It’s been nearly five years since the Mount Polley mine disaster, but a new report says a similar incident could happen all over again if laws aren’t changed.

The BC First Nations Energy and Mining Council is calling for a new framework to make mining companies accountable for their own spills.

It says right now companies don’t have to set aside a disaster fund to move ahead with a project. If a law made doing so mandatory, there would be money for clean-ups even if the company went bankrupt, the council says.

It would also screen out companies that can’t afford the risk of their own projects.

“B.C. has a polluter-pay policy under its Environmental Management Act, but that’s not the reality on the ground,” Allen Edzerza with the First Nations Energy and Mining Council says. “By accepting our recommendations, the government would not only ensure that polluters pay when there are disasters, it would also reduce the risk of another Mount Polley by giving mining companies a financial incentive to reduce risk in their operations.”

The council believes the “temptation to cut corners is much greater when a company knows it might never have to pay for the mistakes and messes it makes.” It believes changes, outlined in its latest recommendations will help change that.

The council is warning the province can expect “two massive dam failures” every decade if laws aren’t changed.

The Mount Polley dam breached at its gold and copper mine, sending 24 million cubic metres of mine waste and sludge into nearby waterways.