KGHM contemplates options; SSN elated about Ajax rejection
KAMLOOPS — KGHM-Ajax officials are taking stock after the province’s announcement this week that the mine will not receive an environmental certificate.
The project manager for the Ajax project, Chris Wild, says his team felt it did everything in its power to mitigate any dangers or environmental risks, particularly in regards to proximity to the city.
“Certainly when we moved the general arrangement or the location of many of the facilities away from the town, that was key in addressing those concerns,” notes Wild. “Some of the infrastructure pieces were too close to the Aberdeen community.”
KGHM changed its plans in 2014, switching to a tailings pond and moving the tailings infrastructure further south. Part of the plan was 90 per cent dust mitigation, which the province didn’t believe was possible, and neither did many groups opposed to the mine project.