First Nations, province monitoring Thompson dam inspections

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This article was published 17/06/2019 (1767 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA — Provincial and First Nations officials say they’re closely watching as Vale inspects the Thompson dams it has flagged for stability issues.

“We know the company is working to protect the safety of citizens, our land, and our waterways,” Grand Chief Garrison Settee of the Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, which represents northern reserves, wrote in a press release.

MKO did not specify how it’s working with Vale, but said it has a “partnership” to help ensure the dams around Thompson are safe.

The Wall Street Journal reported last week on documents Vale issued to its shareholders, indicating at least one dam in Manitoba was not up to safety standards.

Outside inspectors had flagged stability concerns at a complex of six dams near Thompson, saying one could have issues with its foundation.

The firm has insisted those interim findings were borne out in subsequent tests, and that “there is no imminent threat of dam failure.”

A provincial spokesman wrote late Monday that Sustainable Development last inspected the mine in November, and found effluent levels were within the regulations. Over the past year, three mining-safety inspections of the tailing dams were completed, and none led to any orders.

“The Manitoba government continues to monitor effluent quality and conduct inspections at Vale on a regular basis,” read the statement.

NDP MP Niki Ashton has asked Ottawa to investigate the issue.

The Thompson dams are used to hold hazardous mining byproducts, in order to prevent them from seeping into local waterways.

The Manitoba issue came to light after Vale shareholders demanded data, following the January collapse of one of the compnay’s dams in Brazil that killed roughly 270 people in Brazil.

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca