Prosperity Mine Development Enters Environmental Assessment Review Stage

Wednesday, July 09, 2008 04:03 AM

Prince George, B.C. - Another mine has entered the environmental assessment review stage.

This one is the Prosperity project south west of Williams Lake.

Owned by Taseko, the Prosperity property is an $800 million Gold-Copper mine development. The President and CEO of Taseko, Russell Hallbauer, says he is hopeful the process won’t get bogged down “We urge the government to expedite this Environmental Assessment in a timely manner so we can move forward and provide similar benefits to the Cariboo from Prosperity as we presently contribute from our Gibraltar Mine."

Hallbauer says if there were a permit issued today for the Prosperity, his company would invest $800 million dollars creating 500 direct and 1,200 indirect jobs. “This one mine will add 0.3 percent to the Provincial GDP which is more than three times the output of the entire commercial fishing industry and larger than BC's film and television industry.”

Taseko currently employs 475 people at its Gibraltar mine north of Williams Lake.

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Posted on Wednesday, July 09, 2008 04:03 AM in News by 250 News

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Comments

Posted by: darkken on July 9 2008 8:03 AM

Sorry to say that Prosperity has some huge hurdles to clear in getting accepted. For one, it wants to drain a fish bearing lake (coincidentally called Fish Lake) for its tailing pond and DFO have been dead set against that.

Secondly and most critically, the local Xeni Gwetin First Nation has not supported the mine from day one due to land claim and environmental concerns.

So unless those two hurdles are cleared, that mine is dead in the water

Posted by: beesknees on July 9 2008 8:42 AM

I first heard of mining in this area more than 15 years ago (I don't remember the exact year), as I was asked by a member of the First Nations in that area to make people more aware of the potential environmental damage from that mine, and specifically to Fish Lake. Not that I'm an environmental activist or anything, I was just traveling through the area, and camping in some of the nice spots there (people call it "roughing it" now...), and ran into a couple members who educated me about what was happening in their little part of the world.

The environmental assessment won't be done in a timely manner, as the CEO is hoping it will, and it will come back with a firm "NO!", I'm guessing.

I think this company is betting on the wrong horse here.

I know the carrot of employment for people will be there, but there won't be any reward for the children (and grand-children) of the people who live in that area.

And that's the way the environmental assessment will come back.

Look somewhere else, Taseko.

Posted by: He speaks on July 9 2008 12:13 PM

I am pro industry, but not at the expense of a lake. go back to the drawing board and come up with a better plan! It's just money, spend it and protect the enviroment.

Posted by: He speaks on July 9 2008 12:15 PM

Whats with this, it is going to be 0.3% of the GDP, or bigger than the fishing industry..... what kind of moron would say something like that in public. Are we all suppose to say AAHHHHHHHHHH, that's big. That is no way to convince the population.

Posted by: YamaDooPolCat on July 9 2008 11:22 PM

Aw turn off the lights! BC Hydro flooded a huge area of the province so you could have lights today. Too late to get on your high horse about emptying a lake for a mine!

Posted by: northman on July 10 2008 8:22 AM

-I like your thinking YDPC....