The British Columbia government says a proposed copper and gold mine on a First Nation’s territory will not be given an environmental assessment certificate, citing potential risks to water quality and fish.

In a news release, the government said Monday it has rejected the open-pit copper, gold and molybdenum Morrison mine on the territory of the Lake Babine Nation, which was expected to produce 30,000 tonnes of ore per day over a 21-year period.

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Alaskan Fishing Fleet Catching Huge Proportion Of B.C. Salmon: New Report

As salmon runs in British Columbia hit record lows, commercial fisheries along the Alaska panhandle are catching a growing share of salmon bound for B.C. rivers, according to a new technical report.

The report, which includes a detailed analysis on each B.C. salmon species caught in Southeast Alaskan interception fisheries, was commissioned by Watershed Watch Salmon Society and SkeenaWild Conservation Trust and comes as Canada and the United States begin their annual review of bilateral management under the Pacific Salmon Treaty.

Many of B.C.’s largest salmon runs pass through Alaskan waters on their way home to spawn in Canadian rivers. While commercial fishing was nearly non-existent in B.C. last summer, Alaskan fleets just across the border logged over 3,000 boat-days and harvested almost 800,000 sockeye (most of which were of Canadian origin). In addition to sockeye, tens of thousands of Canadian Chinook and coho were also harvested, as well as large but unknown numbers of co-migrating Canadian pink, chum, and steelhead, many of which come from threatened and endangered populations.

The report also highlights the potentially severe impacts of Alaskan harvest on endangered salmon and steelhead populations, and gaps in Alaskan catch monitoring and assessment that prevent responsible management of the fisheries.

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Two closed mines on islands in Babine Lake are leaking dangerous levels of copper that could be damaging the Skeena watershed’s most valuable sockeye salmon spawning lake, The Tyee has learned.

In a report due out this week, SkeenaWild Conservation Trust and the Lake Babine Nation say an analysis of monitoring data from mine owner Glencore shows wastewater from the mines has included elevated levels of heavy metals, including copper contamination up to 20 times greater than provincial water quality guidelines. Read More…

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The Oktwanch River, which flows within the Gold River watershed, is an area Solutions for Steelhead wants to focus on restoring if it receives federal funding. Wetter winters, dryer summers and logging impacts have destabilized the river. Photo: Fernando Lessa

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