SK Enviro Grp - feds to pay more for Gunnar mine cleanuup

[Oscar]

Environmental group calls on feds to pay more for Gunnar mine cleanup

[ http://globalnews.ca/news/2413266/envir ... e-cleanup/ ]

By Calvin To Reporter Global News December 21, 2015 1:31 pm Updated: December 22, 2015 8:50 am

SASKATOON – Years after the Gunnar uranium mine shut down, the cost to remediate the toxic waste left behind has risen dramatically. Now a Saskatchewan environmental group wants the federal government to pay a larger share.

“Really without the government of Canada’s involvement this mine probably would not have opened, and we really think that it shouldn’t just be up to provincial taxpayers to cover more than 90 per cent of the clean up costs,” said Peter Prebble, director of environmental policy for the Saskatchewan Environmental Society.

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After decades of abandonment, only recently has a clean up effort begun. It’s a process that will take several years to complete. Plans are being made to cover the tailings with sand, rock and soil, forming a natural barrier to keep the contaminants in. But it doesn’t come cheaply.

Back in 2006, the province and federal government agreed to split the cost down the middle, then estimated to be $25 million. But nearly ten years later, the price tag has risen to $220 million, yet the federal government has not changed its commitment.

“The Government of Canada has agreed to provide up to $12.3 million of funding for the Gunnar mine site remediation project,” wrote Cathy Khory, media spokesperson for Natural Resources Canada, in an email to Global News.

“$1.13 million in funding for Phase 1 of the project was provided in 2007. Funding of up to $11.17 million will be made available after approvals from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission and the Saskatchewan Ministry of the Environment are provided, allowing the project to move into the implementation phase of the remediation.”

Global News asked if the federal government’s share of the cost would be going up to due to increased price of the entire project, but they did not comment on that matter.

Meanwhile, the province says it will be engaging in talks with the new federal government in the coming months about this issue.

“We believe there’s a clear obligation on the part of the federal government to continue to be involved in the project and we continue to have those discussions with them,” said Laurie Pushor, Saskatchewan’s deputy minister of the economy.