CBC 6/22/22In May, Environment Minister Timothy Halman decided...

CBC 6/22/22

In May, Environment Minister Timothy Halman decided the company did not provide enough information about the potential environmental effects of that proposal to make a decision. He gave the company one year to submit additional plans and studies.

In a news release issued Wednesday, St. Barbara said that decision, which it said came "late in the process," is "placing business continuity at risk."

Tailings facility will run out of room this fall

The mine's current tailings management facility only has enough room to last until mid-September. Even if the request to store tailings in the open pit were approved, construction on the necessary infrastructure would not be able to be completed in time, the company said.

So it has submitted another proposal to the province that would see the existing wall of the tailings management facility raised to allow more material to be deposited there.

The company says it is working closely with provincial regulators and is expecting a decision on the proposal in early August.

If approved, the change would extend the life of the Touquoy operation to the end of fiscal year 2023.

If it is not approved in early August, "this would lead to the operation being suspended and placed in care and maintenance," according to the company.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/touquoy-gold-mine-operations-could-be-suspended-1.6497932