Oppose The Construct of the Cheviot Mine
Mine construction threatens the integrity of Jasper National Park
By Gray Jones Executive Director, WCWC Alberta Branch
Grizzly Bear. Photo:Karvonen Films
"No cover, no food, no pathway, no life for the Grizzly"
David Suzuki
Nowhere in Alberta is there a more polarized environmental-economic issue than the issue surrounding the proposed twenty-three kilometre long strip mine for the Mountain Park area, on the Jasper Park boundary. It has boiled down to the classic scenerio of jobs versus the environment.
It could be argued that the citizens of Hinton, the politicians and proponents supporting the mine are feeding into the well-known 'boom and bust' cycles, which have plagued the other energy industry --the oil and gas industry, for years.
Cardinal River Coals only has a guaranteed three year contract for supplying coal to its Japanese customers. New technologies and markets coming on line may make Cardinal River Coals' scheme not economically viable for a large part of its proposed thirty year duration.
Timber wolf Photo:Karvonen Films
New methods of smelting iron have recently been developed that require little or no coking coal, like the product to be mined at CRC's proposed Cheviot Mine. One of these new selting methods is called the 'pulverized coal injection' or PCI process. In this process much cheaper grades of coal can be used. In the taiga of Siberia, China and Australia there are huge, largely untapped supplies of coal which are coming on line and could be delivered to Japan much cheaper, because of lower wages and transportation costs to Cardinal River Coals' present Japanese customers. There is a distinct possibility that the coal produced by the Cheviot Mine may not be competitive on the world market and that the proposed mine, not being able to compete, may have to close. If the mine is forced to close, the jobs disappear and this could bave disastrous effects on the economy and society of Hinton.
Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep Photo:Karvonen Films
This proposed 'boom and bust' industry is not sustainable development. We have to look at alternatives... Many organizations which track economic trends have predicted by the year 2010, tourism will probably be the world's largest industry. That means that largely prostine and interesting destinations, like Mountain Park will be needed to support future tourist industries.
Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep Photo:Karvonen Films
It has been well publicized that the ecological integrity of our mountain parks, including Jasper are under intense pressure from development and increased tourism. There is a great probability that more grizzlies are dying than being born in Jasper National Park because of train mortalities and increased human pressures on their habitat. Areas surrounding and buffering Jasper, therefore become increasingly important as wildlife corridors, habitats and refuges for species including the wolf, wolverine and the beleaguered grizzly bear. Mountain Park and the area encompassed by Cardinal River Coals is arguably a most important wildlife habitat, refuge and corridor network for Jasper National Park. With increasing numbers of tourists visiting Jasper National Park each year, there is a distinct possibility that tourist numbers may be 'capped' in the future to protect the ecological integrity of the park. That could mean that beautiful Mountain Park, the Cardinal River Divide and surrounding area could support a vibrant tourist and eco-tourist industry employing many local people. A sustainable industry which could infinitely outlast the maximum thirty year duration of the proposed mine. In order to have such an industry, the subtle alpine environments, scenery and species diversity must be kept intact. No visitor wants to visit man-made lakes, creek drainages full or rubble and rehabilitated slopes covered in one or two species of non-native grasses. The quality of the area must be preserved through time.
Timber wolf Photo:Karvonen Films
The sensitive area nestled in the rocky Mountain foothills, known as Mountain Park is arguably an eco-musee or living museum. It is a place where natural and human history converge. Mountain Park has become a treasure for many Canadians and an increasing number of international tourists, who participate in hiking, birding, other naturalist activities and horse-back riding in the area.
Golden Mantled Ground Squirrel Photo:Allison Dinwoodie
Mountain Park, with it's web of creeks, rivers and extraordinary alpine, sub-alpine and valley habitats and their associated ecosystems is under immediate threat from the Cardinal River Coals' proposed massive twenty-three kilometre long open pit mining operation - the Cheviot Mine.
The Western Canada Wilderness Committee is well aware of the cultural and historical significance of Mountain Park to generations of Albertans, directly related by family roots to the old town site. This is the human part of the equation and we support their desire to maintain the integrity of the area.
Save Mountain Park for the future!
Our major concerns about the project are environmental. Within the proposal submitted by CRC there are plans for settling and containment ponds for mine tailings, process chemicals and other effluents.
Grizzly Bear Photo:Karvonen Films
These proposed installations are not state of the art and represent a very outdated and dangerous technology, which in many parts of the world has been replaced by dewatering the coal which alleviates most needs for settling ponds. The area including and surrounding Mountain Park is subject to flooding during years of high snow pack, precipitation and rapid snow-melt. If these settling ponds do not hold and overflow, water qualities and important fish habitats in the Mcleod River and its tributaries could be seriously degraded.
The plan to flood mining pits with water, including one huge pit to be called McLeod Lake, while dumping rock debris into the Thornton Creek and the beautiful Thornton Creek Valley is an abomination.
The fish which will be adversely affected by rock debris in creek drainages and effluent contamination include the only native species of Rainbow trout found in tributaries in the area, the Athabascan Rainbow trout, (found only in the Athabasca drainage, in the whole world) and the endangered Bull trout. Protection of these rare fish species, their habitats and absolute enforcement of the Federal Fisheries Act should be of paramount importance to all Albertans.
Restricted Alconitum Delphinitolium Photo:Karvonen Films
Common Saxifrage Aixoidies Photo:Karvonen Films
The currently known vascular flora of the Cardinal Divide area total 277 species. Of these, 35 or 12% of the flora are important because they are either rare (Packer and Bradley,1984) or geographically significant and usually disjunct (Packer and Vitt, 1974, Mortimer, 1978) An example of four species that are rare and disjunct include Artemisia borealis, Carix misandra, Erigeron radicatus, Lesquerella artica and Rhododendron lapponicum.
Through communications with Dr.John G. Packer, Professor Emeritus, Botany, University of Alberta, we have learned that the entire area encompassed by the proposed mine is full of unique alpine flora that survived the last ice-advance and were not destroyed by glaciation. They are part of a unique and rare refugium and there also is convincing evidence that some insects and arthropods also survived in this area. Dr. Packer states... "This is another reason why this fragile alpine system should not be destroyed in this area and those adjacent. It will however take all of our best efforts to stop the mine". If the mine goes ahead it only ensures jobs for five to thirty years, at the expense of valuable grizzly and alpine habitats and jobs for our children in a future thriving tourist industry for the Mountain Park area.
Grizzly Bear Photo:Allison Dinwoodie
Grizzly Bear Photo:Allison Dinwoodie
Sunset Photo:Karvonen Films
