16×9: Taxpayers will foot the bill for cleaning up contaminated sites
Giant Mine was once one of Canada’s richest gold mines, creating jobs and yielding more than 200 tonnes of the precious metal between 1948 and 2004.
It’s often been credited with helping to build the city of Yellowknife, NWT.
TIMELINE: Yellowknife’s Giant Mine
But there is a darker side to Giant Mine as well, one which may leave taxpayers on the hook for nearly $1 billion.
The process used to extract gold from the mine created a highly toxic dust called arsenic trioxide. Today there is a large quantity of the substance buried underground, perilously close to downtown Yellowknife and an important marine ecosystem.
READ MORE: Arsenic trioxide: What is it is and why it’s so dangerous
Environmental advocate Kevin O’Reilly says the total amount of arsenic trioxide stored beneath the mine site is 237,000 tonnes.
READ MORE: http://globalnews.ca/news/1687225/16x9-taxpayers-will-foot-the-bill-for-cleaning-up-contaminated-sites/
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