Major contract awarded for Faro Mine remediation - North Fork Rose Creek realignment will provide employment and training opportunities for Indigenous people and Northerners

FARO, YT, May 31, 2019 /CNW/ - The Government of Canada is committed to protecting the environment and human health and safety while bringing economic benefits to Indigenous people and Northerners.

Today, the Honourable Carolyn Bennett, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Larry Bagnell, Member of Parliament for Yukon, announced the award of a major contract for the next phase of the North Fork Rose Creek realignment project at the Faro Mine site in Yukon. Pelly Construction Ltd. was the successful bidder on the $44.4 Million project, which is required to prevent the creek from coming into contact with contaminated water on the site. The project will create jobs, build skills, hire local businesses and employees, and bring new economic opportunities to the Yukon.

Quotes

"The work to protect the North Fork Rose Creek and clean up the Faro Mine site will not only safeguard our environment but provide employment and skills training that will benefit local First Nations and the Yukon for years to come."

The Honourable Carolyn Bennett, M.D., P.C., M.P.
Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations

"As the Member of Parliament for Yukon, I appreciate that the development of this project involved Yukon First Nations and Indigenous peoples in the region. Our government values creating equal economic opportunities for all Yukoners."

Larry Bagnell
Member of Parliament for Yukon 

"The Government of Yukon is pleased to see work at the Faro Mine site move forward in a way that will offer economic development opportunities for Yukon First Nations. We will continue to ensure that the site meets necessary standards to protect the land and water that are so valued by Yukoners."

Ranj Pillai
Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources, Government of Yukon

"Remediating at the Faro Mine Site is our community's top priority. Working with Yukon and Canada, as the community most affected by this contaminated site, we share the view that the remediation work must move forward as quickly as possible. Today's announcement, awarding the contract to further this remediation work, is what our community has been looking forward to for many years. Ross River Dena Council is very pleased with the progress on the Faro Mine remediation urgent work, the work that CIRNAC, Parsons and the contractors are doing in such short time. We want to see the work continue and for this to remain a top priority of Canada and Yukon."

Jack Caesar
Chief, Ross River Dena Council

Quick Facts

• The Faro Mine, located in central Yukon, is an abandoned lead–zinc mine that is one of the largest contaminated sites in Canada.
• The realignment of North Fork Rose Creek will keep its clean water clean. It includes the construction of a new 1.9 km water channel, road construction, water management and other related works. A 1.15 km long diversion channel built earlier this year will be used to divert the existing North Fork Rose Creek from the current construction area before work begins on the new channel.
• Targets are set for training and subcontracting with First Nations as part of the tendering process. Since 2005, an average of 57 per cent of the work on Northern Contaminated Sites Program projects has been performed by Northerners and 33 per cent by Indigenous people.
• Contractors for Faro Mine remediation projects are generally hired and managed by Parsons Inc., the Interim Construction Manager for the site. Tenders are posted online at MERX.

Associated Links

Timeline: Learn about the Faro Mine remediation project 
Remediating Faro Mine in the Yukon

Stay connected

Join the conversation about the North:

Twitter: GovCan_North 
Facebook: GovCan – North

You can subscribe to receive our news releases and speeches via RSS feeds. For more information or to subscribe, visit www.cirnac.gc.ca/RSS

SOURCE Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC)

media may contact, Matthew Dillon-Leitch, Director of Communications, Office of the Honourable Carolyn Bennett, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, 819-997-0002; Media Relations, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, 819-934-2302, [email protected]; Brigitte Parker, Communications, Energy, Mines and Resources, 867-667-3183, [email protected]; Stanley Noel, ICD.D, MBA, HBSW, Ross River Dena Council, 867-334-9432, [email protected]

Related Links

https://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca