Rouyn-Noranda | The mine project under the Horne Foundry “is not acceptable”, judges the BAPE

The mine project under the Horne Foundry, in the heart of Rouyn-Noranda, “is not acceptable”, concludes the Office of Public Hearings on the Environment (BAPE), in its report published Tuesday, which highlights the “contamination persistent” of the Abitibi city.

The Falco Resources company wishes to exploit from 2030, for around fifteen years, a polymetallic deposit containing gold, silver, copper and zinc located directly under the former Horne mine and the current one. foundry, from 650 meters below the ground surface to a depth of more than 2000 meters.

But the project called Horne 5 “does not meet the minimum requirements in terms of safety, public health, environmental protection and internalization of costs”, concludes the BAPE.

Concerns about health and the environment are acute in Rouyn-Noranda, which is experiencing an “environmental saga marked by persistent contamination, particularly by arsenic,” recall the president of the commission of inquiry Joseph Zayed in their report. and curators Geneviève Meloche and Martin Lessard.

Concerns for water, air and ground vibrations

The BAPE urges the government, if it authorizes the project, to require that Falco produce various in-depth analyses, notably on the mobility of contaminants, on the consequences of a dike break on the water treatment infrastructure of Rouyn-Noranda and on alternative options to the withdrawal of water from Lake Rouyn that it is considering.

Quebec should also require “a complete and integrated assessment” of the population’s exposure to current atmospheric contaminants combined with those that the Horne 5 project plans to generate, recommends the BAPE, recalling that air quality is “a health issue. long time for the city of Rouyn-Noranda”.

The BAPE is also concerned about ground vibrations generated by blasting and induced seismicity, i.e. earthquakes produced directly or indirectly by human activities.

“These phenomena raise important safety questions which must be rigorously documented,” warns the BAPE, which believes that Quebec should require a complete assessment of the impact of possible vibrations or shocks on the infrastructures of the Horne Foundry as well as on the equipment of the regional radiation oncology center located nearby.

The government should also require from Falco “a detailed study on the disaster risks” linked to the project, as well as an estimate of the costs associated with the worst anticipated scenario and sufficient financial guarantees to cover them, recommends the BAPE.

Uncertain outcomes

The Horne 5 project, valued at $3.8 billion over its entire lifespan, would have positive benefits for players in the local mining sector, but “there is no sufficiently detailed economic portrait to determine” whether it would really be beneficial for Rouyn-Noranda or Quebec, believes the BAPE.

It would also have “a limited effect” on the supply of Quebec zinc and copper processing facilities, two critical minerals, and its contribution to the energy transition and the decarbonization of the Quebec economy would be modest, adds the report. .

The challenges of labor, housing and access to local services experienced by Rouyn-Noranda and which could persist for several years, would also make it “difficult” to carry out the project, which would create 900 jobs, including 500 for the exploitation phase, underlines the BAPE.

Opportunity to improve

Falco welcomes the BAPE report, seeing it as an opportunity to “improve” its project.

“It is common that [le BAPE] requests additional studies and analyzes in order to clarify certain aspects of the project,” the company said in a press release, affirming that more than 90% of the opinions contained in the report have already been “considered, planned or initiated”.

“We are sensitive to the issues raised in [le rapport] “, for its part declared the office of the Minister of the Environment, the Fight against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks, Benoit Charette, assuring that it will continue the analysis of the project taking into account the conclusions of the BAPE.

“The government must stop all investment in this harmful project and publicly confirm [qu’il s’y oppose] “, declared environmental law lawyer Rodrigue Turgeon, of the Coalition Québec Meilleur Mine and MiningWatch Canada, describing the report as a “great victory”.