Manitoba’s environment ministry will be setting aside tens of millions of dollars to clean up a series of abandoned mines, most of which are in the north.
As part of the recent provincial budget, the Manitoba government has set aside over $50 million to hurry along remediation work at five mine sites in Manitoba, most of which are located in the north, over the next five years.
That money will be used to boost work at priority sites, as set out by the provincial environment ministry - Ruttan Mine near Leaf Rapids, the Sherridon mine, the Farley mine near Lynn Lake, the Gods Lake mine and Central mine near Bissett.
The environment ministry and provincial environment minister Jeff Wharton said the funds would “further accelerate clean-up of orphaned and abandoned mines at select sites across the province and create a new long-term care, maintenance and surveillance program for remediated sites.”
“This new investment to remediate orphaned and abandoned mine sites will help reduce health risks to Manitobans and protect the environment while contributing to environmental sustainability and help build our green economy,” Wharton said.
Through the province’s Orphaned and Abandoned Mine Rehabilitation program, the province touted work at the Ruttan mine site and Wharton said that the construction phase of work at the Sherridon mine had been completed. That site will now, according to Wharton and the ministry, move to long-term care and maintenance mode.
“We have completed the construction phase of the Sherridon mine site. The Sherridon site will now move into a long term care and maintenance status. While we undertake this work, we will continue to work in collaboration with surrounding communities,” Wharton said.
“As we expedite this work, our government will continue to work with northern communities to improve environmental impacts in the north. We are confident that investing in the remediation of orphaned and abandoned mine sites not only supports green economic initiatives, but also creates jobs and stimulates economic growth in rural and northern areas of our great province.”
The province and environment ministry considers a mine to be orphaned or abandoned if the site “is no longer in operation and the owner cannot be found or is financially unable to carry out site rehabilitation and remediation, which becomes the responsibility of the province to clean up.” There are estimated to be about 150 orphaned or abandoned mines throughout Manitoba - work through the program in the past has been finished at 39 sites considered to be high or moderate risk.
