Pacific Booker Minerals Inc. (PBM) is still waiting for the outcome of Mount Polley’s review panel to proceed with the Morrison Copper/Gold Mine Project.
The mine project, located north of Granisle, was to have began in 2014 to mine an estimated $6 billion in mineral resources.
On Aug. 4, 2014 a breach of the tailings storage facility dyke occurred at Imperial’s Mount Polley mine causing water and tailings to be released. The incident caused Mary Polak, minister of environment, to suspend the environmental assessment of the Morrison Copper/Gold Mine Project pending the outcome of the independent expert engineering investigation and review panel in relation to the tailings dam breach at the Mount Polley mine.
Under the BC Environmental Assessment Act, the minister of environment has the right to suspend an assessment until the outcome of any investigation conducted by the government of British Columbia.
This wasn’t the first time PBM faced a setback in the Morrison mine project.
On Oct. 1, 2012 a last minute denial of an anticipated environmental approval took PBM and the mining industry by surprise. Despite a positive assessment by the Environmental Assessment Office (EAO) that the project had “adequately and reasonably” dealt with all environmental, First Nations and public concerns, environment minister Terry Clark’s office denied PBM’s application.
In a Feb. 13, 2013 press release, PBM announced that it had retained a Vancouver law firm to advance litigation against the Province of British Columbia in connection with the refusal of the government to issue an Environmental Assessment Certificate for the Morrison Copper/Gold Mine Project.
Pacific Booker Minerals won the court case in December 2013, and had a second chance to see the mine project come to life as the environment minister was asked to reconsider PBM’s application.
The $2.5-billion mining project now awaits the outcome of Mount Polley’s review panel, who has until Jan. 31, 2015 to report its findings on the cause of the tailings dam breach.
Despite the setbacks, company director Erik Tornquist says he remains confident the mine project will be completed.
“The company wishes to emphasize that it is committed to bringing the proposed Morrison Copper/Gold Project to commercial production,” he said.