Mining company says federal agency hindering Carney’s 1 project, 1 review efforts

A proposed gold mining megaproject that would span three sites on Nova Scotia’s Eastern Shore is poised to undergo a federal impact assessment — much to the chagrin of the company behind it.

The Impact Assessment Agency of Canada made the announcement last week about St. Barbara Limited’s 15-Mile Processing Hub Project. The agency could have deferred the project to a provincial environmental assessment alone, but it opted to require a federal impact assessment as well.

St Barbara, the Australia-based company pursuing the multi-pronged mining project, slammed the decision.

“The [agency’s] determination to require unnecessary and duplicative reviews … is very disappointing for both St Barbara and the Province of Nova Scotia,” said Andrew Strelein, managing director and CEO of St Barbara, in a news release.

Nova Scotia Natural Resources Minister Tory Rushton wrote to the impact assessment agency in July about St Barbara’s project, asking it to defer to the provincial regulatory process.

Strelein said that by calling for a federal impact assessment, the agency appears to be mounting a “direct challenge” to Prime Minister Mark Carney’s efforts to streamline the regulatory process for major projects. 

The Carney government has said it wants to remove duplication between Ottawa and the provinces and reduce turnaround time for regulatory decisions to one year. Nova Scotia signed a co-operation agreement with Ottawa on the topic this spring.

Andrew Strelein, CEO and managing director of Australian mining company St Barbara, speaking with CBC News in Halifax on Aug. 27, 2024. (Robert Short/CBC)

St Barbara’s proposed project would see the development of three new open-pit gold mines and one processing facility, scattered across rural parts of Halifax and Guysborough counties. St Barbara has been trying to develop three distinct projects at these sites for several years under the names of Fifteen Mile Stream, Beaver Dam and Cochrane Hill.

Those projects stalled during provincial environmental assessments, and the company criticized the Nova Scotia government for regulating the mining industry too tightly. But since Premier Tim Houston began prioritizing natural resource development last year, St Barbara has renewed its push to expand operations in the province.

St Barbara also owns the Touquoy gold mine near Moose River, N.S., which has been sitting idle for several years, but the company recently launched efforts to start processing its stockpiled ore. In the company’s news release, Strelein said the province recently gave the final approvals, and work is supposed to start this week.

“We were anticipating a series of positive announcements this week … but now we must deal with this unnecessary confusion over what was meant to be ‘One Project, One Review’” he said.

The 15-Mile Processing Hub Project will encompass three locations, including the 15-Mile Mine, the Old Austen Mine and the Old Mitchell Mine. (St Barbara/Strum Consulting)

Meanwhile, Scott Beaver said he celebrated the news of a federal impact assessment.

Beaver — a councillor for the Municipality of the District of St. Mary’s, which contains parts of the proposed project — said he favours the federal process because he thinks Ottawa will do “a much better job, a more thorough job on assessing the risks” than the province would.

He said he expected the impact assessment agency to defer to the provincial regulatory process and was pleasantly surprised it went the other way. 

“I think it has to do with the public outcry,” Beaver said in an interview.

He surmised the agency’s decision was a response to public comments that it received during its initial review of the project. More than 500 submissions were made, including many that were critical.

Out of that feedback, the impact assessment agency identified several potential issues with the project, including adverse effects to fish, migratory birds and Indigenous peoples and their rights.

Beaver is also president of the St. Mary’s River Association and has been pushing back against St Barbara’s mining plans in the region for years. He said gold mining in the St. Mary’s River watershed poses too great a risk to salmon habitats, which his association has been working to restore.

Scott Beaver, president of the St. Mary’s River Association and District 4 councillor for the Municipality of St. Mary’s. (Luke Ettinger/CBC)

He noted that Ottawa is considering designating St. Mary’s River as an Ecologically and Biologically Significant Area — a designation that signals to regulators they’re supposed to be particularly risk averse to maintain ecosystem health.  

Beaver said St Barbara’s gold mines would be at odds with that designation.

The impact assessment agency said next steps include creating guidelines for the assessment, and engaging with the province to reduce duplication.

St Barbara said the agency has given assurances the assessment can be concluded in time for construction to begin mid 2028, as the company had planned.

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