First Nation calls for removal of mining company from management of Yukon disaster area

WHITEHORSE — The Na-Cho Nyak Dun First Nation in the Yukon wants the company that owns the gold mine that suffered a massive ore slide and cyanide spill in June to be relieved of its role in cleaning up the damage and a public inquiry into the disaster.

The country’s leadership said the owner of the Eagle Gold mine, Victoria Gold Corp., has failed to follow government guidelines and cannot be trusted to resolve the situation.

“The company has lost our trust and we do not believe they can effectively address this disaster they have caused on our traditional territory,” Chief Dawna Hope said in a statement issued Thursday.

According to Hope, Victoria Gold’s public apology and her CEO’s statements ring “hollow.”

The First Nation is urging the Yukon government to take “immediate and robust action” to ensure mitigation efforts continue to “remediate and prevent further environmental contamination of the site,” the statement said.

On June 24, the Eagle Gold mine’s leach plant failed, flooding ore with cyanide and releasing millions of gallons of cyanide solution used in gold mining.

Yukon officials reported Thursday that some water samples taken downstream showed cyanide levels that “significantly exceed” guidelines for aquatic life.

The First Nation has said there should be a public inquiry to look into “the mistakes that caused this catastrophe and ensure this never happens again.”

Victoria Gold CEO John McConnell did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday, but told CBC North this week that the company is “doing everything humanly possible to prevent this from becoming a major environmental disaster.”

In that interview, McConnell said the relationship with the First Nation is “strained” and apologized to the Na-Cho Nyak Dun and to the company’s employees and contractors.

The nation’s statement on Thursday said Victoria Gold “does not have the financial resources to undertake remediation.”

McConnell said the company’s finances are “fine” for the next four to six months.

Na-Cho Nyak Dun’s statement came after Yukon officials released their latest update on the results of water testing and sampling from monitoring stations downstream of the Eagle Gold mine.

Brendan Mulligan, a senior scientist with the Yukon Department of Environment, said there has been a “pattern of increasing cyanide levels” in water samples taken near the mine since the landslide of the contaminated ore.

He said samples taken further downstream showed lower levels of the chemical due to dilution, and concentrations did not exceed drinking water guidelines.

Mulligan said groundwater sampling is currently on hold due to safety concerns and instability at the site of the mine disaster.

Territorial officials continue to work with the mine owner and the Na-Cho Nyak Dun First Nation, he added.

According to Cameron Sinclair, senior fisheries biologist, research is currently underway to determine the long- and short-term effects on fish in nearby Haggart Creek. Fish tissue samples have also been sent to a lab for testing for heavy metal accumulation.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published August 1, 2024.

The Canadian Press