http://www.theprovince.com/index.html
VANCOUVER — The federal government approved the environmental assessment application on Friday for the massive KSM gold and copper mine in northwestern British Columbia near the Alaska border.
The mine, which is owned by Seabridge Gold Inc. (TSX:SEA), is considered the largest undeveloped gold reserve in the world and also has copper, silver and molybdenum deposits.
The project would be just 35 kilometres from the Alaska border, and in August the state took the rare step of asking the Canadian government for involvement in the approval process over concerns for its rivers and fish.
But the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency concluded in its report that the KSM project isn’t likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects.
Seabridge CEO Rudi Fronk said the company was confident it would receive the approval because it has spent six years and $200 million working with government, local First Nations and the state of Alaska. The company conducted 40 working group sessions with federal and provincial regulators, First Nations and American regulators, he said.
“From our perspective, the environmental assessment process in Canada works. However, it takes a very long time and is very expensive,” he said. “But if you get proper engagement with the regulators and with the First Nations and treaty nations, you can successfully get projects approved.”
Fronk said that meant a lot of listening and design changes where appropriate.
“We probably made a number of design changes over the years that amounted to about $500 million of additional capital that’s going into the project as a result of those design changes.”
For the rest of this article, click here: http://www.theprovince.com/Massive+gold+mine+near+Alaska+border+gets+environmental+approval/10668213/story.html