The Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal is the daily newspaper of Northwestern Ontario.
The main environmental document outlining plans and potential impacts of a new copper and palladium mine on Marathon’s doorstep has been delayed.
The Enviromental Impact Statement (EIS) document was supposed to have been released last week, but in a letter to the federally appointed review panel for the project, Stillwater Canada said “it ran into a few delays.” The report should be submitted (this week),” the letter adds.
Planned public hearings into the open pit project just north of Marathon’s airport can’t take place until after the EIS document has been scrutinized by both the three-member review panel and the public. A date for the hearings, likely to take place in Marathon and at Pic River First Nation, have yet to be set.
Stillwater plans to employ about 350 people at the mine, expected to be in production in three to four years if the project passes the joint provincial-federal environmental review and obtains necessary permits. The projected mine life is about 12 years.
Stillwater has also been in talks with various First Nations whose traditional lands could be impacted by the project.
The (EIS) document, expected to be lengthy, is to be made available at public libraries and band offices and should also be accessible online.
Stillwater has also been eyeing three motels on the outskirts of town that are believed to be needed to house construction workers and employees.
The company said it won’t comment on that particular project until a zoning application it has made for the properties has passed through an appeal period.
Earlier this year, Mitsubishi Corp. announced it had taken a 25-per-cent stake in the Marathon project, as well as the option to purchase up to 100 per cent of the mine’s production under a related supply agreement.
Stillwater has said it had been looking for a partner to develop the mine, estimated to cost in the range of $550-$650 million.
More information about the proposed mine is available online at marathonpgmproject.com