Taseko Mines Limited (the Proponent) is proposing to develop an open pit gold-copper mine located 125 km SW of Williams Lake, B.C. (the Project). The Project would have a production capacity of greater than 75,000 tonnes per year of mineral ore.
The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (the Agency) and the B.C. Environmental Assessment Office (EAO) are collaborating on their respective federal and provincial environmental assessment processes and are seeking public comments on two key documents.
1. Draft federal-provincial Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) Guidelines/Application Terms of Reference (the Guidelines)
This joint federal-provincial document specifies the studies to be conducted and the detailed information to be provided by the Proponent in order to meet the federal criteria for producing a proper Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and the provincial criteria for filing an Application for an Environmental Assessment Certificate (the Application).
An EIS is a statement of the anticipated environmental effects of the Project that will be submitted by the Proponent to the federal review panel. The Guidelines identify the issues the Proponent will be required to address in its EIS.
The Proponent must obtain an environmental assessment certificate from the EAO before any work can be undertaken on the Project. However, prior to submission of an Application by the Proponent, the EAO must first approve the Guidelines, which outlines the information to be provided by the Proponent in its Application.
The intention of seeking public comments on the Guidelines is to ensure that all potential effects – environmental, economic, social, heritage and health – that might result from the Project are identified as part of the assessment process.
2. Terms of Reference for establishing a federal review panel
Canada's Environment Minister will be referring the Project to a federal review panel. This document establishes the mandate and authority of the federal review panel, its composition and the process and procedures for conducting the review.
The Comment Period
The 30-day comment period on both documents will begin on November 3, 2008 and end at midnight on December 3, 2008.
After taking public comments into account, the Agency and the EAO will finalize the Guidelines, issue them to the Proponent and make them available to the public. The federal Terms of Reference for establishing a review panel will also be finalized by Canada's Environment Minister and made public following the consultation.
Please forward written comments to:
| Commentson the Guidelines |
Comments on theGuidelines or on the Terms of Reference forestablishing a federal review panel |
Garry Alexander
Project Assessment Director
B.C. Environmental Assessment Office
PO Box 9426 Stn Prov Govt
Victoria, B.C. V8W 9V1
Fax: 250-356-6448
eaoinfo@gov.bc.ca |
Steve Chapman
Panel Manager
Canadian EnvironmentalAssessment Agency
160 Elgin St., 22nd floor
Ottawa, ON K1A 0H5
Fax: 613 957-0941
steve.chapman@ceaa-acee.gc.ca |
Electronic copies of both documents will be available on November 3, 2008, online at www.ceaa-acee.gc.ca and www.eao.gov.bc.ca. Copies of the documents will also be available for viewing at these locations:
-
Cariboo Regional DistrictLibrary
180 North 3rd Avenue
Williams Lake, B.C.
-
Williams Lake City Hall
450 Mart Street
Williams Lake, B.C.
Public Open Houses
In order to provide information about both documents and to receive comments from the public, the Agency and the EAO invite the public to attend any of three Open Houses at the locations and times below:
| Location |
Date / Time |
Gibraltar Room, Cariboo Memorial Complex
525 Proctor St., Williams Lake, B.C. |
Friday, November 7, 2008 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. |
| Saturday, November 8, 2008 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. |
Alexis Creek Community Hall
2620 Stum Lake Road, Alexis Creek, B.C. |
Saturday, November 8, 2008 from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. |
Open houses will include presentations with an opportunity to ask questions.
NOTE: All submissions received by the Agency and the EAO regarding this Project are considered public and will be posted to the Agency and EAO websites.If you do not want to have your address and/or email address and telephone number posted to the EAO website, please indicate this with your comments.
