[ambler]

This is another really dumb idea out of Ottawa.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/06/16/condemned-lakes.html#socialcomments

 

[Kuma]

As much as I'd like to blame those with whom I disagree politically, this appears to be a fairly old policy (handed down from previous governments) that needs to be challenged.

From the CBC site, "Since the introduction of Schedule Two of mining effluent regulations under the Fisheries Act, in 2002, 16 lakes have been proposed for reclassification as tailings dumps.Four of the 16 are already being used as dumps — all in Newfoundland. Two of those are at the Duck Pond Mine and the other two are older mines due to be brought under Schedule Two retroactively. Only one of the 16 — Kemess North in B.C. — has been turned down. Eight are to be decided in the coming year."

 

[stsfisher]

i agree japander, this is not something new to canada and its lakes. take a look at the logan lake mine. for years they have been using lakes or ponds to contain sentiment from the metals that are being extracted. however the mine has stocked these ponds and they seem to do very well. dont get me wrong, there is a time and place for using lakes or ponds to intercept harmfull deposits, but what is the alternative to allow these deposits to leach into the ground water we all drink or into the soil which we all eat our food from. lets not forget that these metals and such are being extracted for us the consumer who has developed a need for such materials for our every day happenings. and yes i do agree that the government needs to control the mines better as to not allow precious lakes to be lost forever. just my :2cents:

 

[professori]

i agree japander, this is not something new to canada and its lakes. take a look at the logan lake mine. for years they have been using lakes or ponds to contain sentiment from the metals that are being extracted. however the mine has stocked these ponds and they seem to do very well. dont get me wrong, there is a time and place for using lakes or ponds to intercept harmfull deposits, but what is the alternative to allow these deposits to leach into the ground water we all drink or into the soil which we all eat our food from. lets not forget that these metals and such are being extracted for us the consumer who has developed a need for such materials for our every day happenings. and yes i do agree that the government needs to control the mines better as to not allow precious lakes to be lost forever. just my :2cents:

The big difference is that the "lakes" you are referring to are a man-made containments built for the specific purpose of holding the tailings. The only tailings pond stocked, is the brood pond at the site. the other "lakes that are stocked are retired pits,l that are no longer being actively mined and have been allowed to fill with water. I have had the privilege of fishing at Highland Valley Copper. Bob Hamaguchi (the head mining engineer) is an avid fisherman, and would actively campaign against using existing lakes, with healthy populations of fish, as tailings dumps.

 

[Kuma]

I'd like to pump up the "policy needs to be challenged" part of my previous post. Creating man-made containment ponds and cleaning them up is very different from dumping tailings in pristine lakes. Alberta will pay the price for generations for its relatively unchecked tar sand development. Dead ducks in the oil industry equivalent of a tailings pond is just the tip of the iceberg. The whole northern portion of the country (in what appears to be Canadian shield/BC mountain ranges) may pay a price similar to that in Alberta if this isn't reconsidered.

 

[Mykiss Irideus]

Yes, Professori, and japander have got it right: there is a huge difference between killing a viable wild fishery in an existing lake and using an old pit mine for a pond or lake and stocking it with fish.

It is time for more anglers to really put their minds to what is happening to our fisheries resources and stop being so complacent about all of this development. While stsfisher is right that our consumer culture is creating the demand for these minerals, it is imperative that we move away from that kind of wasteful disposable society; not only that but there may be scientific and technological advances that could be used to work towards cleaner mining and tailings disposal technologies.

Back in the late sixties, when it was a priority for the American government and people, we put a man on the moon. Surely, if we make wild salmon, steelhead, and trout a priority, there is way to reverse the declines that we are seeing? Surely we can find ways to access some of these minerals and resources and not exterminate wild salmonids in the process?

I am involved in the huge issue of coalbed methane development in the precious headwaters of three of B.C's greatest wild salmon rivers: the Skeena, Nass, and Stikine. So I am seeing first hand the callous attitude that mulit-national companies have for our irreplaceable wild fisheries resources.
http://www.sacredheadwaters.com
And by the way, one of those lakes that has a rich, great wild fishery that is destined to be killed by a mine is a part of the Sacred Headwaters area. The Red Chris mine has just received the go-ahead to use a lake near it's Mt. Todagin property as a full scale tailings pond.
Just another example of our governments, both federal (the folks who "managed" the northern cod stocks into extinction) and provincial (the folks who love open net pen Atlantic salmon farms on our B.C. coast and who have given Shell the go ahead to create this huge coalbed methane gas field in the headwaters of the Skeena river) step by step, reducing and diminishing our wild fisheries.

At this point every step matters, every fishery, every wild stock is crucial to the survival of our wild fisheries and it is imperative that you all on this thread, and all anglers, get involved and do something for the fisheries that we all treasure and that we should all be able to hand down to future generations so they can enjoy them the way we have.