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Prime minister right on New Prosperity

Time for Taseko to step up with environmental protection proposal

By Jim Shepard

Like many British Columbians, I was extremely disappointed to see the New Prosperity mine proposal rejected last week.

The project would have been an economic game changer for the region delivering $11 billion in added Gross Domestic Product over the life of the project.

After considerable time for evaluation, the federal agencies denied approval of this project. As reported by the Vancouver Sun, Prime Minister (Stephen Harper) said,” [the environmental assessment] said very clearly that the project previously and presently conceived, would not address the long-term destruction of [the local water system]. And that our experts said they could see no proposed plausible mitigation measures for that.”

That clear description of the prime minister’s concern about this environmental assessment of this project shows that Taseko still hasn’t been able to come forward with a proposal that satisfactorily protects the pristine nature of Fish Lake. The prime minister listened to the environmental experts, as he should, and their verdict was clear – Taseko failed to deliver a plan that would guarantee the integrity of Fish Lake and the surrounding environment.

This concerns me on two fronts.

First, my family and I had the good fortune to have lived several years in Williams Lake and spending weekends in the outdoors became part of our lifestyle. I feel it is imperative that any mining project for this region must be absolutely sound environmentally. Certainly the preservation of Fish Lake as it presently exists must be of paramount concern.

Apparently, Taseko Mines still missed that critical point. Until they do, they are wasting their time.

It baffles me because this same company has successfully operated another mine in the Cariboo, Gibraltar Mines since 1999.

Gibraltar has provided paycheques to many families in the community and operated without any serious environmental issues that I am aware of. There is no reason in the world Taseko shouldn’t be able to build off their track record at Gibraltar and get their act together with Fish Lake.

Second, I am very concerned about the negative light this places on British Columbia as a place to invest in resource development. My experience as CEO at Finning and Canfor showed me how sensitive capital investment is to any hint that a jurisdiction is difficult to deal with on launching a project.

So the lack of adequately addressing concerns about Fish Lake by Taseko not only jeopardizes the New Prosperity Mine, but it also could have a chilling effect on the investment interest of other resource development through out B.C. Those other projects are vitally needed to provide jobs for all concerned.

The way forward seems clear enough. Taseko needs to get back to the drawing board and develop a plan that places the integrity of Fish Lake and the environment at the centre of it.

They have done this at Gibraltar and they have done this with their properties elsewhere. There can be no more misfires and no more chances.

I also think it is critical the prime minister keeps an open mind. This project is absolutely critical to the future of the region and possibly the province as a whole.

The prime minister was correct in his concerns during the last round, but he must be open to saying, yes, to a future project that addresses those concerns.

I urge Taseko Mines to do a thorough review to see how they can enhance the environmental protection dimension of this project to address the very real concern of our prime minister. The project is simply too important to the people of the Cariboo to do anything different.

Jim Shepard is the former CEO of Finning and Canfor and he can be reached at Mine4bc@gmail.com.