Old ‘talc mine’ expansion gets conditional clearance

A proposed expansion and upgrade to the facilities at the pyrophyllite mine in Long Pond has been approved by the provincial environment department with a number of conditions.

Trinity Resources had sought permission to build a 1.3 km bypass road from Minerals Road to divert public traffic from the mine and processing area. The company is also proposing to reactivate mining at the oval pit and Mine Hill deposits and add some processing equipment.

Environment Minister Bernard Davis said the project can be released from environmental assessment as long as Trinity upholds all the commitments made in its application to mitigate the effects of the project on the environment.

“This includes the commitment to provide permanent, uninterrupted public access to the backcountry via the by-pass road described in the submission,” Davis noted in a statement issued by his department.

Trinity will also have to sign an agreement with the department to install a water quality and quantity monitoring network for groundwater and surface water, and to bear all the costs associated with the network, which must be installed prior to commencing the expansion.

The company must also submit a groundwater assessment and monitoring report on existing baseline groundwater levels, flow and quality and must describe how the mining operations will affect water quality in the area.

The Department of Transportation has also set a condition: that Trinity undertake a Traffic Impact Study to determine if upgrades to the on-ramp merge lane from Minerals Road are necessary to mitigate traffic safety concerns associated with the project.

Trinity must update Davis’ department on the status of the project, including providing a copy of all permits, licences, certificates, approvals and other authorizations required for the next year.

The Mine Hill deposit was discovered in 1903 by Frederick Andrews, who built an aerial tramway from the mine to the railway to transport the pyrophyllite. The mine has operated on and off over the years since then, and is popularly known in CBS as the “talk mine’ because of pyrophyllite’s resemblance to talc.

Trinity Resources bought the mine in 1998 and says it has been exporting some 100,000 metric tonnes of product annually over the wharf in Long Pond. Last year, according to the company, it shipped some 200,000 metric tonnes of cement grade pyrophyllite.

Trinity has told the department it has successfully developed other applications for the pyrophyllite and estimates it has some 30 million tonnes of reserves off Minerals Road and a mine life of more than 60 years. The company said it will spend over $8 million at the mine over the next two years on the bypass road, upgrades to the processing plant and on re-establishing mining operations.

“Employment will exceed 50 full time jobs with additional direct and indirect expenditures on supplies, service providers and contractors,” according to a statement in the company’s filing. “Annual exports are forecasted to grow which will provide continued support to the Port of Long Pond as Trinity is a significant commercial user of the port for export activities.”