RIVERS WITHOUT BORDERS

Canada Needs to Clean Up Its Act

Alaska Dispatch    News and voices from the Last Frontier ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Chris Zimmer

September 16, 2009

It’s been said that strong fences make good neighbors. But those neighbors need to lean across that fence and talk to ensure a safe, clean, and peaceful neighborhood. That’s what Sarah Palin tried to do on one of her last days in office when she wrote to the government of British Columbia urging a timely halt to highly toxic acid mine drainage (AMD) flowing from the abandoned Tulsequah Chief mine into the Taku River watershed. For over 50 years, the mine has been polluting this transboundary watershed with AMD that Canadian regulatory agencies found to be “acutely lethal” to aquatic organisms.

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Alaska: Parnell should make Taku River a priority

 Monday, August 31, 2009   
Parnell should make Taku River a priority
Letter to the editor 

Thanks for the Juneau Empire article last week discussing the Taku River and its contribution to Juneau’s sport fishing. Taku River salmon account for about 90 percent of our spring king catch, 25 percent of sport-caught kings during the rest of the season and one third of the local coho harvest. The Taku is the most productive river in Southeast. Its wild salmon support hundreds of jobs and provide millions of dollars in revenue to Southeast Alaska. 

In a clear indicator of the importance of the Taku to Alaska, former Gov. Sarah Palin, on one of her last days in office, sent a formal request to the government of British Columbia urging the cleanup of highly toxic discharges from the Tulsequah Chief mine. For 50 years, the mine has been polluting the Tulsequah River with acid mine drainage found by Canadian regulatory agencies to be "acutely lethal" to aquatic organisms. 

The owner, mining company Redfern Resources, is bankrupt and has essentially abandoned the Tulsequah Chief Mine. Redfern recently removed most of the equipment and a water treatment plant from the mine site in order to sell them to pay creditors, despite a specific request from Palin not to do this. The British Columbia government has largely ignored the problem, while Environment Canada has issued a series of cleanup orders but has done little to enforce them. 

Alaska’s Department of Natural Resources and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game have vigilantly protected the Taku River’s fisheries, but it is important that they keep the pressure on British Columbia and the rest of Canada to clean up this mess. Since the British Columbian government has so far ignored Palin’s letter, I urge Gov. Sean Parnell to continue efforts to halt the pollution from the Tulsequah Chief Mine. 

Alaska has managed the Taku River to protect water quality and healthy spawning habitat, which will ensure that the Taku’s rich fisheries continue to benefit many generations of Southeast Alaska families and businesses. But we need to engage with British Columbia more. While the Alaska side of the Taku provides the majority of the rearing habitat for juvenile salmon, the British Columbia side has the majority of the spawning habitat. 

I hope Parnell makes the Taku a priority. As Randy Bates, director of the Alaska Coastal Management Program, said in February about the Taku River, "There are certain areas that warrant just a little more protection." 

Chris Zimmer, Juneau

Palin letter to Alaska DNR re: Tulsequah Chief Mine

Sarah Palin writes to the Alaska State Department of Natural Resources to ensure their vigilance on stopping acid mine drainage at teh Tulsequah Chief mine.  Download her letter as a PDF.

Palin letter to Gordon Campbell re: Tulsequah Chief mine

In one of her last acts as Alaska’s governor, Sarah Palin wrote to BC Premier Gordon Campbell to request his help in ensuring the clean up of BC’s acid polluting Tulsequah Chief mine. Download letter as a PDF

Tulsequah Chief Mine Cleanup Petition

Click here to see our petition asking the Canadian government to enforce cleanup laws at the Tulsequah Chief and Big Bull mine sites. 

Comments on Proposed Terms of Reference for the Mount Klappan Coal project assessment

To: Anne Curry, Project Assessment Director, BC Environmental Assessment Office
Subject: Comments on Proposed Terms of Reference for the Mount Klappan Coal project assessment

January 8, 2007
 
Re: Terms of Reference for the Environmental Assessment of the Mount Klappan Coal Project

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Y.E.C.F: Advice Regarding Tulsequah Chief Mine

Prepared for Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans by Rob Walker, Manager, Project Assessment, Yukon Executive Council Office (09.24.2004)

Advice to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency Screening of the Tulsequah Chief Mining Project and Associated Transportation Impacts.

Click here to download the report [PDF]

CWS re: Redfern’s Documentation with Respect to Caribou Issues

Prepared for Department of Fisheries and Oceans by Dr. Martin Raillard, Manager, Northern Conservation Division, Canadian Wildlife Service (09.03.2004)

RE: Environment Canada’s Review of Redfern’s Documentation with Respect to Caribou Issue.

Click here to download the CWS Letter [PDF]

C.S.P.P.: Outstanding Issues Regarding the Tulsequah Chief Project

Prepared for Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans by Amy Cook, Alaska/BC Program Coordinator, Center for Science in Public Participation (07.15.2004)

…Comments on fishery and water quality issues, the adequacy of the project assessment process, and financial assurances needed to protect the public interest from the risks and liabilities associated with using public funds to clean up long and short-term pollution from mine sites.

Download the CSPP Letter here [PDF]

Re: Forrest Kerr Hydroelectric Project: Notes on Meeting of Fisheries Technical Committee, November 1, 2002

Prepared by Adam Lewis, Fisheries Biologist/Principal Ecofish Research Ltd. November 7, 2002

Attention: David MacKinnon and Chris Zimmer

Dear Sir:

Further to the request of Chris Zimmer, I attended a meeting of the fisheries technical committee on November 1, 2002 and provide meeting notes and an interpretation of the next steps.

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