St Barbara's Environmental Charges
In September 2020, St Barbara Atlantic Operations was charged under the provincial and federal government’s Environment Act (related primarily to an unplanned sediment release and a failure to report these release events to the federal regulator).
Over the course of more than two years, significant rainfall near the Touquoy Mine caused sediment from roadways around the site to be released into a small fish-bearing waterway that intersects at several points throughout the project area.
Upon discovery of the release, St Barbara immediately notified the Nova Scotia Department of Environment and Climate Change (ECC) who visited the site. After each sediment release event (there were 13 in total), St Barbara worked with the department on different courses of action, and implemented several mitigation strategies. The last mitigation strategy implemented in 2021 has resulted in no additional sediment releases.
While the team immediately engaged the provincial department, the failure to notify the federal Department of Environment and Climate Change within the required timeframe resulted in federal charges.
Was this sediment dangerous?
No, it was determined to be road run off and did not contain any mining process water. Tests were conducted on the sediment, and to the nearby ground and aquatic areas for toxicity and it was concluded that there was no release of dangerous substances to the environment.
What happened after charges were brought forward?
After discussions with provincial and federal regulators, St Barbara Atlantic Operations pled guilty to two offences total and paid $250,000 in fines. Part of those penalties included directing funds to the following areas:
- Provincially: $60,000 each to the Unama’ki Institute of Natural Resources and the Mi’kmaw Conservation Group
- Federally: $125,000 to The Federal Environmental Damages Fund.
What actions has St Barbara taken to prevent events like this from occurring again?
Between 2018 and April 2021, St Barbara Atlantic Operations invested $2.5 million in capital and operational costs for erosion and sediment control measures. This includes:
- Corrective work including the redesign and reconstruction of the Tailings Management Facility (TMF) Haul Road roadbed with the incorporation of filtration layers (including geotextiles).
- Surface grading altered to direct all storm water into collection ponds which is then pumped into the TMF.
- St Barbara has also hired third-party environmental consultants to review our practices. As well, St Barbara employees received additional training on proper environmental procedures.
Since this incident, there have been no similar examples of sediment release, despite experiencing higher rain fall incidents.
While St Barbara is regretful that these releases occurred, we use these instances as an opportunity to improve our operations and look at better and more effective ways to meet our company commitment of Respecting the Environment.