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GASPÉ MINES:   Côte-de-Gaspé and Osisko Discuss Environmental Concerns 

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , ,

Nelson Sergerie, LJI Journalist

GASPÉ – Environmental protection was the main point of discussion on October 9 between elected officials of the Côte-de-Gaspé MRC and the mining company Osisko, which wants to restart the exploitation of Mines Gaspé in Murdochville at the end of the decade. 

The prefect, Daniel Côté, believes that the project is well received by the community. “What we appreciate about the company is that from the start of the exploration work, they put themselves in front of the population to receive questions and give answers. They have an attitude of transparency that is appreciated,” notes the prefect. 

Company executives have held three information meetings in Murdochville since the revival of the mining project and met with elected officials from Côte-de-Gaspé on October 9. 

They had questions about environmental impacts, social issues, where the workers will eventually come from and how the economic benefits will be distributed to ensure maximum economic benefits. 

“The port of Sandy Beach is the largest port nearby. We want to use it. We will have a (repaired) railway when the mine is in operation. We are looking at all the development tools around it,” notes the prefect, recalling that at the time, all the surrounding communities benefited from concrete benefits. 

The company indicated in the last citizen information meeting in September that it plans to use the train to transport ore to the Horne smelter in Rouyn-Noranda. 

“Environmental concerns, particularly the impact of the dewatering of the pit on the York River. We don’t want economic development at all costs without considering all the other axes. We couldn’t afford to sacrifice the York River and Gaspé Bay for jobs. We’re going to stay on the lookout for all the environmental aspects that will have impacts,” notes Mr. Côté.

The company anticipates approximately 1,000 jobs during construction and between 300 and 500 jobs during operation.

“I expect these jobs to be well-paid, but we will have to seize opportunities around resource extraction and avoid harmful impacts when the mine closes. We experienced it in Murdochville: when the mine and the smelter closed, the town had difficulty recovering,” analyzes the elected official.

The minimal royalties planned for the community will have to be reviewed.

“Quebec pockets nice royalties, but they are low for the community. There will have to be discussions with government authorities so that there are additional royalties for the community to plan for ‘after the mine’, to
avoid the economic crash like we experienced in 2000,” Mr. Côté maintains.

The prefect senses a real concern for environmental protection on the part of Osisko

“We feel that there is a real concern. When we ask questions, there are answers. At least, it’s a winner. We
saw companies in the oil era that, when we asked questions, we got no answers. This time, we have clear answers,” he says, adding that Quebec environmental standards must be respected.

“I hope that there will be quite pronounced vigilance because this is an industry that could have environmental impacts. For now, transparency is required within the company and we will ensure that the Ministry of the Environment does its job so that we do not escape it,” demands the elected official.

Daniel Côté does not believe that we will see a population of around 5,000 people again, like in the town’s golden age.

“Unless we are able to build an economic fabric around the revenue generated by the mine. With 300 to 500 employees, we will not be able to house them in Murdochville or even in the surrounding area,” the elected official pointed out, noting that the vacancy rate is 1% in Gaspé.

“These are probably workers who will be there until 2050 or 2060. So, there is a prospect of profitability in housing construction. This is where we will have to convince real estate investors to redeploy housing in Murdochville, Gaspé, Grande-Vallée, Cloridorme and elsewhere and ensure that these workers live in the territory to avoid fly-in, fly-out,” said the prefect who hopes to maximize the economic benefits in the region.

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GASPÉ MINES: Osisko says data points to a revival

Local Journalism Initiative / / / , , , ,

Nelson Sergerie, LJI Journalist

Gilles Gagné, The Gaspé Spec Editor

 MURDOCHVILLE – Even though all the analyses are not yet complete, Robert Wares, president and chief executive officer of Osisko Metals, believes that with the current data, a revival of Murdochville’s Gaspé Mines is likely. 

On September 10, Mr. Wares made his third presentation in two years, aiming to showcase the progression of the Osisko Metals project over the last three years. Approximately 115 people attended the presentation, with the attendees mostly expressing support for the mine’s reopening. However, there were questions regarding the venture’s timeline and environmental aspects. 

Robert Wares stated that a revival of mining activities in Murdochville in the next six or seven years will largely depend on the rising price of copper, the main condition needed for  profitability. 

“We hope to have a minimum price of US$4.25 per  term. We hope it will go higher, to US$5.00. Several economists predict that the price will rise to US$5.00 and remain there for the next five years. At this price, it would be very profitable,” says Mr. Wares. 

Copper is currently trading at around US$4.10 per pound. The effects of a worldwide shortage could be felt as soon as 2025, added Robert Wares, specifying “This metal is vital for the decarbonization of the economy.” 

The preliminary economic study will likely be filed in February. An in-debt feasibility study will be required to find investors. However, $1.8 billion of capital will be needed to reopen the Mount Copper open pit and install an ore concentrator. The site of the former smelter will be used in the latter case.   Robert Wares mentions that $70 million will have to be raised between now and 2028 to move the venture forward. He is confident about that possibility as well. 

When Mr. Wares was asked if, with the current data, would the company launch the project today if it could, he was categorical in his answer: “In my opinion, yes. Yes, absolutely.” 

The environmental aspect still worries a few citizens, particularly the dewatering of the Mount Copper mine pit and the caribou protection line that encroaches on the mining area. 

In the latter case, the encroachment comes from the fact that Osisko Metals must submit two eventual locations for the mine tailings. One is situated east of the projected mine, at the original location  used by Gaspé Copper Mines, and the other is located to the northwest, encroaching on the caribou protection zone. 

“We have had very few questions about the long-term environmental impact. Minister (of the Environment, Benoit) Charette’s new caribou habitat regulation zone could potentially be a problem for the mining development of Mines Gaspé. We will file a brief in October to express our concerns and propose to the government to push the eastern limit of the residential zone, 10 to 15 kilometres further west to free up the territory,” explains Mr. Wares. 

“There is no evidence of caribou presence in this area,” he says, arguing that the will decide where the tailings will go. 

Open pit dewatering 

In regards to the dewatering of the pit and the discharge into the York River, the Osisko Metals president assures that he is doing everything in his power to limit the impacts, particularly on the salmon habitat. 

“The goal is to have zero impact on the river. The dewatering will be done over a minimum of two and a half years and the rate will be mitigated depending on the seasons and the volume of water. During the summer, sometimes, the level of the York River is dangerously low. This could be an opportunity to increase the rate to avoid that. We will do new tests this fall. And we believe that we have found a form of passive treatment for the water to reduce the copper levels in the water,” said Mr. Wares. 

This passive treatment uses limestone to clean the water to a certain degree. According to tests carried out over the last few months, the Mount Copper pit water contains 60 parts of copper per billion. 

“The goal would be to reach 20 parts per billion, which would be acceptable to all,” he adds, indicating that this would be under Directive 019 on the mining industry, which sets the acceptable monthly average concentration at 300 micrograms of copper per litre. 

“Salmon don’t react to a lot of other metals but they react a lot to copper. We will even try to reduce the concentration of copper to 15 parts per billion,” says Robert Wares. 

The Mount Copper open pit mine currently contains 35 million cubic metres of water, the equivalent of 35 billion litres. 

Transportation 

The ore produced in Murdochville will likely be transported by truck to Gaspé and would then be transported by ship to smelters located in Europe and by train to the Horne Foundry in Rouyn-Noranda in the Abitibi region.  “It will be up to Glencore to decide,” says Mr. Wares about the destination of the production.  Glencore, the former owner of Gaspé Mines, sold the property to Osisko under an agreement reached in 2022, retaining the right to buy 100% of the mine’s production. 

Jean-Claude Plourde, a resident of Gaspé asked about the impact of the heavy traffic on Road 198, Mr. Wares pointed out that despite “the trucks being bigger today, as they can carry 35 tons,” the number of trucks would also be higher compared to when the first Gaspé mines operated between 1953 and 2002. 

More drilling to come 

The drilling results carried out this year remain encouraging and will be announced by press release this fall. The exploration team drilled over 8,000 metres between the spring and the end of the summer. 

“Additional drilling will be carried out in 2025 in order to get more information about the size of the mine and confirm its copper content. We will drill on Mount Copper towards Mount Needle to determine the limits of the mining zone,” stresses Mr. Wares. 

Quality of life 

Most people who attended the September 10 meeting expressed support for Osisko Metals. Lise Cyr was among them. “I have lived here for 67 years. I think, between you and me, that we are very happy to see that there will be another mine.” 

Julie Lévesque, another Murdochville resident, inquired about the permits needed by Osisko Metals before starting the construction of the new mine and the ore concentration plant that will go with it. 

Robert Wares explained that securing all the permits needed to reopen the mine will take the same time, two years will be required for the company to secure the capital needed to bring the venture to fruition. 

Emmanuelle Desrochers-Perrault, a management consultant and project manager who lives in Murdochville, supports the project but is concerne about the social impact of the eventual mine’s reopening. 

“I am really interested in the environmental aspects of the project. This milieu will remain once we are gone. Our children will stay here. I care about the social impact the project could have for the people who have chosen nature, quietness and an access to the outdoors”, Ms. Desrochers-Perrault points out. 

Citizens who do not want to live in Murdochville could be offered to sell their homes to the company, as was done in Malartic, Abitibi, where Osisko Metals developed a gold mine. 

Mr. Wares hopes to see the mine restart at the end of 2030, but 2031 is more likely. 

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