Top Photo. View of the tailings management facility from the sedimentation pond area. June 2019.
The company’s Quebec operations are located near the town of Chibougamau, Quebec, just south of the 50th parallel. The climate is continental with extremes between the summer and winter with an average annual temperature that is slightly less than 0oC. Average rainfall is 996 mm per year and average snowfall is 3.13 meters per year.
The wildlife and flora around the company’s operations are present throughout the boreal forests of the Canadian shield in Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba and Newfoundland.
With the company’s assets located close to Lac Doré and Lac Chibougamau water management is an important aspect of the company’s operations. Lac Chibougamau occupies an area of 206 km2 and has a maximum depth of 59 meters. There are numerous islands and bays in the lakes. The water flows from Lac Chibougamau to Lac Doré and then through a series lakes and rivers until the water enters James Bay via the Nottaway River. The total drainage area is 65,800 km2.
As part of its water management program, weekly samples are taken from discharge of the Tailings Management Facility (TMF). In addition quarterly samples are taken from piezometers in the TMF as well as upstream and downstream of the Copper Rand site. The Copper Rand facility is sampled as if it is an operating mine per Environment Canada regulations.
During the months of the year when the water discharge from the Copper Rand tailings management facility is flowing a weekly water sample is taken and sent for analysis to an accredited laboratory. The results are shared with Environnement Canada and the Quebec Ministry of the Environment.
The results over the last four years show excellent compliance with water quality norms. The four main parameters analyzed are dissolved iron and copper, total suspended solids and pH. The iron, copper, and suspended solids levels are a fraction of their applicable limits. The pH has only had one monthly deviation from the norms.