Blackwater Mine: Tailings Areas Authorized

Summary#

These final regulations amend the Metal and Diamond Mining Effluent Regulations to add four specific areas near Vanderhoof, British Columbia, as authorized tailings areas for the proposed Blackwater mine. The change allows the project to bury 24 water bodies (about 57.1 hectares) and took effect on registration on June 9, 2023.

What it does#

• Adds four geographic areas to Schedule 2 of the Metal and Diamond Mining Effluent Regulations, designating them as Tailings Impoundment Areas.
• Authorizes the deposit of mine waste into the waters in those areas for the Blackwater Project, which will permanently remove 24 water bodies used by fish, totaling 57.1 hectares of fish habitat.
• Requires the mine owner to prepare and get approval for a fish habitat compensation plan (FHCP) before any mine waste is deposited.
• Requires the owner to provide an irrevocable financial guarantee to cover the FHCP. The government’s stated estimate for implementing the FHCP is $13.7 million (over 2023–2036).
• The mine’s planned tailings storage and waste numbers described in the regulatory materials include storing about 334 million tonnes of tailings and 467 million tonnes of waste rock.

Who's affected#

• The main company affected is BW Gold Ltd. (a subsidiary of Artemis Gold Inc.), the project proponent and mine operator.
• Local and regional fish and aquatic ecosystems in the Davidson Creek and Creek 661 watersheds near the project.
• Indigenous communities engaged in consultations and with local interests, notably Lhoosk’uz Dené Nation, Ulkatcho First Nation, and the Carrier Sekani First Nations. (Some Nations provided support; others raised concerns about offsets and long-term protections.)
• Federal regulators, especially Environment and Climate Change Canada and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, who must review and approve the FHCP and monitor compliance.
• Nearby communities and people who use local lands and waters for fishing, recreation or traditional purposes.

Why it matters#

• It legally permits a mine to destroy fish habitat in specific water bodies, something normally prohibited, but only if a compensation plan is approved and funded.
• The government says the FHCP will create more habitat than is lost: the plan aims to produce 110.7 hectares of new or improved fish habitat (including 10.4 hectares of rainbow trout instream habitat and 100.3 hectares of riparian habitat) versus the 57.1 hectares lost.
• The company must back the plan with money (estimated $13.7 million) so compensation measures are funded even if things go wrong.
• Indigenous groups and local stakeholders pushed for stronger protections and long-term securement of offset sites; some concerns remained about where offsets are placed and whether legal protections on private lands are sufficient.
• In practical terms, residents and people who rely on local fisheries or rivers should know the decision allows large-scale mine waste storage nearby but ties that permission to a formal habitat compensation program that must be approved and financed.