Long-awaited N.W.T. mining road through national park gets thumbs up from review board

The much-anticipated all-season road to Canadian Zinc's Prairie Creek mine passed its environmental assessment this week,more thanfiveyears after the Prairie Creek mine was approved in the heart of Nahanni National Park Reserve.

The Mackenzie Valley Review Board announced Tuesday it is recommending the project to the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs for conditional approval.

• Review Board releases its report for the Prairie Creek All Season Road

This week's green light marks the end of a process that lasted more than three years. ThenearbyNahanniButte DeneBand grew impatient, and began constructionon their own road to the mine.

However, the board's support is contingent on the implementation of 16 measures it says willprevent "significant adverse impacts on the environment."

Among those measures:a road adapted for permafrost conditions, along with ongoing permafrost monitoring; wildlife monitoring that incorporates traditional knowledge; and the creation of an independent technical panel to ensure the road's design protects people and the environment.

The company calls the board's decision "an important milestone" for the Prairie Creek project.

"Canadian Zinc is confident that the measures prescribed by the review board, many of which build on Canadian Zinc's commitments made during the EA [environmental assessment], can be satisfactorily addressed," said Alan Taylor, chief operating officer of Canadian Zinc.

Longer transport season, less traffic

The 180 km all-season road would connect the Prairie Creek Mine to the Liard Highway near NahanniButte, N.W.T, with about half of the proposed road running through the Nahanni National Park Reserve.

Construction of the road is expected to take three years.

Canadian Zinc says an all-season road would extend the trucking season for the lead, zinc and silver mine, allowing the company to move supplies in, and mining concentrates out, throughout the year.

The Prairie Creek Mine already has extensive infrastructure in place, including underground workings, a mill, a fleet of vehicles, three drill rigs, camp accommodation, and a kilometre-long gravel airstrip.

Canadian Zinc is currently negotiating an agreement for co-management and community monitoring of the all-season road with the Nahanni Butte Dene Band. It will also need a land use permit before construction can begin.

As for the mine itself, it received approval from the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs in 2012, and afinal licence for operation in Sept. 2013.

The company is looking to finalize its feasibility study this year, which it hopes to use to secure financing for the construction and development of the mine.