Environmental sensitivity

Over one-third of the Northwest Territories is covered by lakes and rivers and, in spite of its apparent abundance, water is considered a precious resource, especially by Aboriginal peoples, as it has provided habitat for much of the wildlife that is critical to their traditional lifestyles. The caribou, whose herds can number in the hundreds of thousands, play a key role in Aboriginal culture and spirituality and caribou remains a staple in the diets of many Aboriginal people. These and other environmental factors have had to be carefully taken into account to ensure the Diavik mine would have minimal environmental effects on the environment and would fit the needs of local communities.

Some highlights:

• Diavik funds an Environmental Monitoring Advisory Board to provide advice and oversight on environmental issues. The majority of members of the Board are appointed by Aboriginal communities - a first in Canada.
• Preservation of water quality in the lakes and drainage systems was of paramount importance to the Dene and Inuit communities who expressed their great sensitivity to sustaining the environmental quality of land and water. Hence, comprehensive baseline data was collected on fish and water, wildlife, vegetation and terrain, air quality, heritage resources and socio-economic conditions, and this was supplemented by traditional knowledge contributed by community residents and elders.
• The Aquatic Effect Monitoring Programme has been put in place to verify the on-land dams' performance in not allowing any pollutants to enter Lac de Gras. Under this programme, lake water is sampled and analysed at regular intervals and at set locations over the complete range of depth, both at times of thick ice cover and during open water.
• Diavik built, and continues to support, a Community Traditional Knowledge Camp, which is located adjacent to the mine site and runs every summer. Here, Diavik works with the five neighbouring Aboriginal groups, As part of these camps, elders, adults and youth representing local communities participate in workshops that blend traditional knowledge with science. Studies include fish palatability, water quality moniting, and caribou monitoring.
• One of these workshops, the fish palatability study - which assesses fish health during mining operations - responds to concerns raised by Aboriginal people during the initial environmental assessment, that mining might have adverse affects on fish texture and taste. Aboriginal representatives complete questionnaires rating fish on appearance before and during cleaning, and on look and taste once the fish are cooked, while fish are also collected to gather statistical information that helps assess health (weight, length, stomach content etc) and samples are sent for chemical analysis. Overall, participants have found fish texture to be healthy and of good quality and, on the science side, the data collected mirrors baseline data collected in 2002.
• Diavik is 'cleaning up as it goes' through a process of progressive reclamation, using traditional knowledge collected as part of early community consultations. This knowledge is, for example, being used to help to address the issue of how to deal with the two large rock piles that will be left behind after 20 years of mining. As caribou sometimes use part of East Island for their annual migration, it is important not to create a barrier for them. Caribou naturally seek higher ground because breezes in open areas provide relief from the onslaught of insects. Working from suggestions by the elders, Diavik Diamond Mines Inc engineers have incorporated gradual ramps on every side of the rock piles, so caribou can easily climb them. As more and more rock is piled on the island, these ramps will be continuously refined so that the caribou can continue to use the land as they have for the past millennia.
• As part of Diaviks's closure plan, fish habitat and artificial islands will be created in areas where the dikes once stood. These islands and shoals, once created, will render these shorelines an ideal spring habitat for migrating shorebirds.
• Diavik monitors the potential effects of the mine on wildlife and wildlife habitat. For example, waste management practices were changed to limit the attractants for wolverine at the waste transfer area in response to the presence of higher numbers of wolverines in the area.
• Diavik is participating with Canadian universities and researchers in numerous scientific studies focused on environment and geology at the mine site. This includes research into effects of mine blasts on fish, evaluations of potential plant species for reclamation, and monitoring of dust distribution using lichen as a bioindicator. The results of these research projects will be published and will help Diavik to generate the best adaptive management and reclamation practices.
• The prevention or management of metal leaching and acidic drainage from mine wastes is a significant environmental issue facing the mining industry. During the past decade, there has been an expansion of mining interests in Canada's North due in large part to the diamond industry. Little is known about the environmental implications of storing waste rock piles in regions where there is continuous permafrost and the average annual temperature is below freezing. Diavik is undertaking research to determine the effect of arctic climate on diamond waste rock piles to facilitate long-term protection of the environment, and this information is expected to be applicable throughout the world.