Government of Yukon provides updates on Victoria Gold’s Eagle Gold Mine heap leach failure

Today, the Government of Yukon officials, accompanied by Deputy Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources Lauren Haney and Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Sudit Ranade, provided a fifth technical briefing to update Yukoners on the government’s regulatory oversight and work with partners at the Victoria Gold Eagle Gold Mine site.

The Government of Yukon prioritizes the safety of people and the environment in every decision related to mining activities. Recognizing the importance of balancing economic interests with environmental stewardship, the government’s approach to mining legislation and environmental management is guided by engagement with Yukon First Nations and adherence to Final Agreements.

Enhanced Yukon government leadership:

• Deputy Minister Lauren Haney will now focus on the Eagle Mine emergency response.
• Effective immediately for a period of six months, Dennis Berry, President of the Yukon Liquor Corporation will serve as an interim Deputy Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources

Yukon government action in response to company’s failure to follow inspector directions:

• Due to the company’s failure to construct a safety berm, the Government of Yukon has engaged contractors to design and build this berm. The berm is critical to ensure that groundwater monitoring and interception wells can be installed safely.  
• The groundwater wells are required to monitor groundwater for potential contamination and to pump potentially contaminated groundwater to surface for treatment and safe discharge. 
• This work is expected to take around two weeks to complete and groundwater wells can be installed in certain locations as construction progresses once it is safe to do so. 
• However, there is a forest fire burning along the access road, which may impede the Yukon government’s contractors access to the site.  

Water management:

• On July 20, additional directions were given to the company not to discharge any water to an unlined storage facility and to procure or construct more water storage facilities.
• The Government of Yukon has directed the company to provide evidence of procurement or construction, and are in regular contact with company officials about their responses on site. 

Environmental monitoring:

Water

• Daily water sampling is underway and samples are being collected at eight surface water sites downstream of the mine and three groundwater sites.
• This will provide the data needed to understand the extent of the impact and to inform next steps. 
• Staff from the Government of Yukon and the First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun are in regular communication and have developed a joint water quality monitoring plan for on-site and downstream of the mine site.  
• These samples are being screened for various forms of cyanide, heavy metals and other contaminants and are being compared to Federal aquatic life water quality guidelines, and to the water quality objectives as part of the mine’s licences.
• As of July 20, CoreGeo a Yukon-based company is leading on-site water sample collection efforts and execute the water monitoring plan that Yukon government has put in place.
• A cyanide field kit is also being used on-site and the results from the kit will provide a rough indication of the presence of cyanide and the test only takes around 40 minutes to return results. Kit results are not as accurate as lab results.
• Over the past week, between the results coming back from laboratory testing and the Yukon government’s field kit tests, they are observing an increase of contaminants in the water.
• If the water quality conditions change, the Yukon government is prepared to adapt monitoring and conduct additional monitoring such as toxicity tests to better understand the environmental impacts of the slide.
• The Yukon government is sampling across the Haggart Creek watershed at over 50 locations, 21 of which were previously assessed in 2010, allowing them to detect changes since then, and then onward to determine long-term effects.
• This work started over two weeks ago, focusing on Haggart Creek, then to its tributaries. Recent heavy rain is hampering current efforts; however, the initial work is expected to be completed in the next week.

Fish

• The Yukon government has collected approximately 50 Arctic Grayling and 50 Slimy Sculpin, which our Animal Health Unit will submit to an approved laboratory to analyse for arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury levels.
• The Energy, Mines and Resources Inspector’ s report noted that several Arctic Grayling were found dead on the mine site. These fish were sent to Environment and Climate Change Canada for tissue analysis and the Government of Yukon is  awaiting those results.
• At this time, no dead fish have been observed downstream or in the receiving environment of the mine while performing monitoring over the last number of weeks.

Health information:

• The drinking water supply wells for the Village of Mayo have not been impacted.
• Environmental Health Services and the Chief Medical Officer of Health are actively monitoring the situation for any potential health impacts. Should the risk level change, the Yukon government will update our public advice to those impacted.
• Based on current information there is no elevated risk to anyone in the area for recreation due to the heap leach failure.
• Harvesting wildlife or gathering plants in the area is not considered a health risk at this time.
• Out of an abundance of caution, the Government of Yukon recommends not eating fish from the immediate area of the mine. Ongoing monitoring will help understand longer-term risks.
• Current data shows no evidence that the mine failure has made animals, such as moose, unsafe to eat. Therefore, the Chief Medical Officer of Health is not recommending any changes to hunting behaviour or the consumption of wild meat at this time.

Government engagement:

• The Yukon government will continue to provide regular weekly updates to the public, stakeholders and the First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun.
• Technical experts continue to respond to media questions while also working to mitigate the impacts of the slide and monitor the company’s clean-up efforts.
• The Government of Yukon is building a web portal to share key updates and water sampling results with the public.

Fire update:

• Last night, a thunderstorm in the area created erratic winds and unpredictable fire behaviour to the Haldane Lakes fire (MA-12). As a result, the road leading to the Eagle Gold Mine is closed temporarily due to safety concerns.
• Wildland Fire Management is working directly with the mine and officials to facilitate essential travel to the mine site.

The Government of Yukon remains committed to sharing information and will continue to update the public on progress and developments. This involves efforts to explore methods for ensuring the public remains informed as new information emerges.