KGHM says it’s ready to talk, so let’s have a conversation

FRIDAY MORNING EDITORIAL — The first release of information of any real significance from KGHM International on its Ajax project in a long time came Thursday and it’s a big one.

The company is proposing a re-drawing of its site plan to move what’s called drystack tailing storage from its original site to south of Jacko Lake and the pit. The original plan — between the Coquihalla Highway and the Lac le Jeune Road — was problematic for a number of reasons, not the least of which was aesthetic.

Under the new layout, a conventional tailings pond will stretch south from Jacko Lake through Goose Lake. It will ensure that Inks Lake is saved, but Goose Lake is a goner. According to KGHM it’s not much of a lake anyway.

What will be lost, though, is hundreds of acres of some of the prettiest ranch land around, characterized by its rolling grass meadows and groves of poplars and evergreens. Whether this is a good trade is certain to spur a whole new debate around this project — in fact, it already has.

KGHM International says it sincerely wants to consult with the public about these changes. That would be an excellent idea. Despite a pretty YouTube video that talked about the corporation’s wish to have a “conversation” with the public, there’s been little of that for quite some time. Indeed, having a “conversation” seems to be a common refrain in the mining industry — B.C. Mining Association president Karina Brino used the same words during a speech to the Kamloops Chamber of Commerce recently.

Is KGHM International ready to do that? It’s publishing another colourful brochure about the new site plan and plans three days of open houses in late June. But will it also start showing a willingness to meet with groups of concerned citizens, like the Kamloops Physicians for a Healthy Environment, Kamloops Moms for Clean Air, Kamloops Area Preservation Association, and neighbourhood and community groups — open doors, open invitations? Will it debate the pros and cons of the mine in an open forum? Will it take part in town hall meetings? Will it, in short, open a true conversation?

It has said in the past there hasn’t been much to talk about. Now there’s lots. What’s the status of its investigations into the additional ore deposits it provided as the reason last August for delaying its Environmental Assessment application? Will a wet tailings pond reduce the amount of dust that will blow into Kamloops? Where will the water come from for the tailings pond? What are the possibilities the company will want to expand the pit in future, after it’s begun operation?

So, let’s talk.