LEADERSHIP

BC miners eye impacts as more flooding, landslides forecast

Miners in British Columbia are being impacted after flooding and mudslides damaged infrastructure last week – and another “atmospheric river” has been forecast.

Staff reporter
 The Vedder Mountain Road is among the damaged infrastructure in BC

The Vedder Mountain Road is among the damaged infrastructure in BC

The weather system is expected to bring up to 150mm of rain to parts of the province, along with the possibility of more flooding and landslides.

The province declared a state of emergency last Wednesday and the death toll has since risen to four. 

Centerra Gold said on Friday the rail service between its Mount Milligan mine and west coast terminals had been disrupted by the heavy rain, flooding and mudslides, impacting its freight of concentrate and the delivery of some parts and consumables to the mine.

It said production had not been impacted at that stage but "the overall impact on production and sales will be dependent on, among other things, the duration of the rail disruption".

The transport routes to New Gold's New Afton mine were also affected and the miner said any potential impact to production, sales or costs would depend on the duration of the disruption.

"To date, the flooding in British Columbia has had no material impact on New Afton's infrastructure and operations," it said on Friday.

Teck Resources said last week there had been no impact on production at its BC operations "at this time" but the overall impact and any potential effect on Q4 sales would be dependent on the duration of the logistics chain disruption.

Canada Pacific said on the weekend it was working around the clock and hoped to restore the rail service between Kamloops and Vancouver by mid-week, barring any unforeseen issues.

Just months ago, mines in BC - including Teck's Highland Valley Copper operations - had been impacted by wildfires.

The province has an emergency order in place, putting temporary restrictions on vehicle fuel purchases and non-essential travel on severely damaged highways.

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