Yukon environmentalists applaud Casino Mine review

The Yukon Conservation Societyis welcoming a decisionby the Yukon Environmental and Socio-economic Assessment Board (YESAB) to send a massive and controversial mining project to the highest level of review.

YESAB announced on Thursday that the Casino Mining Corp.'s proposed copper and gold mine would be subject to a panel review, the first in YESAB'shistory.

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"It is uncharted territory," said Lewis Rifkind of the Yukon Conservation Society, referring to the panel review. "It's going to be a learning curve for everybody."

"At least YESAB is taking the time to do a proper analysis of what could be a huge miningproject, bigger than Faro [mine], and we all know how Faro ended up. So let's examine this, and get it right so we don't end up with a mess."

YESAB's decision to call for a panel reviewwas guided by concerns over two aspects of the proposed mine projectanearth-fill dam that would be the largest tailings dam in the world, and the mine's potential impact on the Klaza caribou herd.

Rifkind shares those concerns, and others. He said the mine project plans to use liquefied natural gas (LNG) for power, significantly contributing to the territory's greenhouse gas emissions.

But the biggest worryis the dam, Rifkind said. Other aspects of the mine proposal could be modified or altered to answer concerns, but the dam is "a non-starter," he said.

"That tailings dam is just so big, and the potential for failure is so great," he said, citing the failure of a similar dam at B.C.'sMount Polley mine site, in 2014.

"It's not appropriate anywhere in the world, let alone in the North."

Western Copper and Gold said in a statement on Thursday that it also welcomed the YESABpanel review, "to demonstrate that the Casino mine can be built without significant adverse effects."

YESAB has notified the federal environment minister about the panel review. It must be completed within 15 months of the minister's response.