Impact Assessment Agency of Canada Hosted two Zoom Meetings on Canada Nickel's Crawford Mine

The Impact Assessment Agency of Canada completed to virtual online public information sessions into Canada Nickel’s Crawford Nickel Project. The February 15 session was conducted in English and the February 16 in French.

During the sessions which the public participated via a Zoom meeting, IAAC representatives gave a presentation about the elements of the impact assessment, Canada Nickel completed for the Crawford Project in Timmins, north of Glencore’s Kid Creek Mine. In the English presentation spokesperson Harry Hees described the Imapact Assessment process and the studies and other requirements Canada Nickel must meet to gain federal approval for Crawford Nickel Impact Assessment Technical.

An In person meeting will be held in Timmins on February 22 at the Ramada Riverside from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
 
Under the Impact Assessment Act of Canada a proponent of a major project must include an assessment of the positive and negative environmental, economic, health and social effects and the potential impacts of the project on the exercise of rights of Indigenous peoples as recognized in section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982. The IAAC is an agency that reports to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change. The impact assessment contribute to making an informed decision to proceed with a project in a way that reduces the impacts of the project on the natural and social environment.

Canada Nickel’s Crawford project will be one of the largest nickel project in the world and will help Canada meet one of the elements in Canada’s Critical mineral strategy that is vital for securing a supply of nickel and cobalt  needed for batteries used in Canada’s Electric Car industry.

The project will consist of an open-pit nickel and cobalt mine with a metal mill. Mine ore production capacity up to 275,000 tonnes per day with a mill output of 120,000 tonnes per day. The mine and mill will operate for 43 years and will require relocation of part of Highway 655 and a new 20 km rail spur line to Kidd Creek Mine.

Construction is scheduled to commence once approval and permits are acquired and is scheduled to occur between 2025 and 2027. The Crawford Mine will operate between 2027 and 2070 and will be decommissioned from 2070 to 2073 where Canada Nickel will restore the site to as close as possible to its pre-mining operation. Ongoing monitoring will take place after 2073.

Canada Nickel has set an operational goal of being  a net zero contributor to carbon emissions through a carbon sequestration process.

Over the next three weeks, Canada Nickel is seeking public input into the draft tailored impact assessment for the specific site and also its draft consultation plan.

The documents are available on The IAAC Impact Assessment Registry. The public has until March 8, 2023 to provide feedback on the two documents. The documents are crucial for the follow up  consultation and the scope of what their assessment will be.

The public may access the company’s assessment documents at the IAAC registry site https://iaac-aeic.gc. ca/050/evaluations/proj/83857

Based on the results of the impact assessment studies carried out by Canada Nickel, the Minister will determine if the project should be  referred to a fuller public assessment hearing.

Some of the requirements that Canada Nickel must study and report on are:
-Why the project is needed
-What is being proposed for mining the site and a look at alternative methods
-The existing biophysical environment, health, social, economic conditions
-Impact on Indigenous people
-Effects of potential accidents and ways of preventing or mitigating the impact of the accidents on the natural and social environment
-The projects contribution towards meeting Canada’s critical mineral strategy
-And meeting the sustainability goals

A live, in person session will be held on February 22, 2023 at the Ramada Riverside, in Timmins, Ontario between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Hourly presentations will be made in both English and French.

In April 2023, the agency will issue a notice of commencement for the detailed impact assessment that Canada Nickel will conduct.

For further information
Impact Assessment Agency of Canada
416-659-0765
Crawford@iaac-aeic.gc.ca
Media@iaac-aeic.gc.ca
Twitter @IAAC-AEIC #CrawfordNickel
 

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