Canadian miners see threat from climate change – study
miningweekly.com
By: Liezel Hill
19th August 2009
TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – A significant percentage of Canadian miners believe that climate change could have, or is already having, a negative effect on operations, according to a report published on Wednesday by the David Suzuki Foundation.
Interestingly, however, only 25% of senior executives and management viewed future climate as something that could impact their operations, while people who were actually working in the field were much more likely to perceive the threat.
The results of two surveys indicate that between 34% and 48% of mining stakeholders believe that climate change is already having a negative impact on their operations, according to the report, titled Climate Change and Canadian Mining: Opportunities for Adaptation.
“Because of its dependency on the natural environment, the Canadian mining sector is particularly vulnerable to the consequences of climate change,” said report co-author and mining researcher Jason Prno.
The study is the first of its kind in Canada and looks at current mining-industry trends in relation to climate change impacts on mining operations, efforts to curb the industry’s own greenhouse gas emissions and ways that the industry can and should adapt.
“We spoke with mining stakeholders from across Canada and found a significant number believe that climate change is already having a negative impact on their operations,” Prno said.
Over the past 20 years, mines across Canada have experienced impacts from climate events including droughts decreasing water availability and forcing gravel quarries to curtail production; warm temperatures leading to ice road closures, and heavy rains shutting down access roads.
Warm winter temperatures in 2006 led to ice road closures in the North West Territories, costing diamond mines millions of dollars for fuel and equipment to be transported by air, while, in August last year, heavy rains in the Yukon flooded four kilometres of the Minto mine access road and forced the company to release excess untreated water directly into the Yukon River system.
“The mining sector is increasingly taking action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but most companies are not yet pro-actively planning for climate change,” Prno commented.
He said companies should take the effects of climate change into account from the earliest stages in mine planning.
The report also concludes that further research is needed on the impacts of climate change in mine rehabilitation projects, with an estimated 27 000 orphaned or abandoned mines in Canada.
It also makes several recommendations for steps to be taken by government, including the introduction of regulations to mandate that mines plan for climate change both during their operational lifespan and through decommissioning. |
