Dan MacLennan, Campbell River Courier-Islander, January 21, 2011

Groups opposed to a Quinsam Coal Mine expansion proposal have enlisted some prominent environmental legal help, and expanded media coverage of the issue at the same time.

Major media took notice quickly Wednesday when Ecojustice, formerly known as the Sierra Legal Defence Fund, called on the Environment Ministry's Director of Waste Management to declare Long Lake a contaminated site because of arsenic levels more than 30 times higher than provincial guidelines.

"Designating Long Lake as a contaminated site under BC law would enable the full suite of tools to remedy the problem," said Keith Ferguson, a staff lawyer with Ecojustice. "And that should start with ensuring it doesn't get any worse."

The letter comes after the Campbell River Environmental Committee, the Campbell River Estuary Protection Group, the Haig-Brown Institute, and the Greenways Land Trust wrote to the provincial government seeking the contaminated site designation. Studies by the Canadian Water Network (CWN) found arsenic levels in Long Lake sediments to range up to 630 parts per million (ppm), well above local background levels and over 30 times the level that qualifies as a contaminated site under BC's Contaminated Sites Regulation. The studies also pointed to the Quinsam Coal Mine above the lake as the source of the contamination.

"This existing contamination is especially concerning given that Quinsam Coal Corporation is applying to expand the mine," said Leona Adams of the Campbell River Estuary Protection Group. "It is crucial to first determine the full severity and extent of contamination already created by the mine, before a decision is made on whether to expand it."

"This river system has been producing salmon for over 10,000 years," said Stan Goodrich of the Greenways Land Trust. "We know we can destroy it. We urge the BC government to instead protect it."

An alternative to the contaminated site designation, said Ferguson, would be for the province "to order a site investigation of Long Lake in accordance with section 41 of the Environmental Management Act."

"This contamination is especially disturbing given that the April 2010 study and an associated study by the University of Aberdeen in Scotland found the arsenic in Long Lake sediments may be in an acutely toxic form that can be taken up by biota," Ferguson wrote. "This could potentially have significant adverse biological effects on the aquatic ecosystems downstream as the arsenic is released from the sediments into the water column over time.

"Please treat our request to you as urgent, given that an application to expand the Quinsam Coal mine is currently under consideration by government authorities. We consider it crucial that the full severity and extent of the contaminated site potentially already created by Quinsam Coal mine be determined, to allow for consideration of appropriate remediation if applicable and to allow for a more informed decision on the expansion application."

Quinsam Coal owner Hillsborough Resources rejects any connection between mining operations and the elevated arsenic levels in Long Lake sediments.

© Courier-Islander (Campbell River) 2011

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