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24-MMP-A6 Mining and the Environment · Undated paper

Question 2 of 6: Mining Acts and Regulations

Nivaar worked solution (AI-drafted; not reviewed by a licensed engineer)

Notes on this paper

EGBC National Exam — Mining and Mineral Processing Engineering, 09-MMP-A6 Mining and the Environment, undated sitting (the exam's own page header reads "National Examinations, May 2019"). 3 hours duration, open book (any non-communicating calculator permitted). Unlike most sittings of this subject, this paper's own Note 3 states "Complete all SIX questions" – there is no five-of-six choice, so all 120 marks are compulsory. Most questions require an essay-format or point-form answer; clarity and organization are explicitly assessed.

Reference texts: International Network for Acid Prevention (INAP), Global Acid Rock Drainage (GARD) Guide (ARD prediction, static and kinetic testing, treatment); Price, W.A., MEND Report 1.20.1, Prediction Manual for Drainage Chemistry from Sulphidic Geologic Materials (1997/2009); Government of Canada, Metal and Diamond Mining Effluent Regulations (MDMER, SOR/2002-222, the current name for the exam's "MMER") under the Fisheries Act (R.S.C. 1985, c. F-14); Government of Canada, Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (S.C. 1999, c. 33); Government of Canada, Impact Assessment Act (S.C. 2019, c. 28, successor to the 2012 Canadian Environmental Assessment Act); Government of Canada, Species at Risk Act (S.C. 2002, c. 29); BC Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation, Health, Safety and Reclamation Code for Mines in British Columbia (current edition); Canadian Dam Association (CDA), Dam Safety Guidelines (2013/2019 update); Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM, 2020); Vick, S.G., Planning, Design, and Analysis of Tailings Dams (1990).

Question 2: Mining Acts and Regulations (20 marks)

Question text not reproduced: the examination questions are © Engineers and Geoscientists BC. Open the official past paper (linked at the top of this page) to read the question, then follow the worked solution below.

A. Three Acts/Regulations

ActObjective / relation to environmental protectionCurrent citationCustodian agency
Canadian Environmental Protection ActPollution prevention framework governing toxic substances, from assessment and listing through to control of their release, to protect the environment and human health.CEPA, 1999 (S.C. 1999, c. 33)Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC)
The Fisheries ActProhibits the deposit of a deleterious substance into water frequented by fish and protects fish and fish habitat from serious harm, directly governing mine effluent discharge.R.S.C. 1985, c. F-14, substantially amended 2019 (Bill C-68)Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), with ECCC administering the effluent regulations (e.g. MDMER) made under the Act
Impact Assessment Act (successor to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act)Requires a federal impact assessment of designated projects (including large mines) to identify, avoid or mitigate adverse environmental, health, social and economic effects before a decision to proceed is made.Impact Assessment Act, S.C. 2019, c. 28Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC)

(The Species at Risk Act, protecting listed wildlife and their critical habitat from mining-related harm and administered by Environment and Climate Change Canada/Fisheries and Oceans Canada/Parks Canada depending on the species, is an equally valid fourth choice; any three of the four satisfy the question.)

B. Metal and Diamond Mining Effluent Regulations (MDMER) under the Fisheries Act

i) Deleterious substance and prescribed substances. Under Fisheries Act s. 34(1), a "deleterious substance" is any substance that, if added to water, would degrade or alter the quality of that water so that it is rendered or is likely to be rendered deleterious to fish or fish habitat, or to the use by humans of fish that frequent that water. The MDMER (Schedule 4) prescribes maximum authorized monthly mean concentration limits for a defined list of deleterious substances; two examples are arsenic and copper (cyanide, lead, nickel, zinc, total suspended solids, radium-226 and un-ionized ammonia are also prescribed, along with an allowable pH range of 6.0–9.5).

ii) Authority to Deposit – three conditions. Where no transitional authorization applies, a mine may deposit effluent containing a deleterious substance only where: (1) the concentration and quantity of each prescribed deleterious substance in the effluent, and its pH, do not exceed the limits set out in MDMER Schedule 4; (2) the effluent is not acutely lethal to the test organisms specified in MDMER Schedule 5 (rainbow trout and Daphnia magna bioassays); and (3) the mine complies with the sampling, testing, environmental effects monitoring and reporting requirements of MDMER Schedule 5 and reports the results to the authorization officer. Check: the exact regulatory wording of the "three conditions" should be checked against the current consolidated MDMER (SOR/2002-222) at the time of use, since the regulation has been amended by schedule updates since its 2002 enactment.

iii) True/False.

#StatementAnswerReasoning
1Any concentration permitted if disposal area confined and not fish-frequentedFalseThe Schedule 4 concentration/pH limits and Schedule 5 acute-lethality and monitoring requirements apply to any deposit of mine effluent regardless of whether the receiving area is a natural fish-frequented water body; a naturally fish-frequented water body can only be used for tailings deposit through a separate formal listing/compensation process, not by simply confining the area.
2May combine/dilute effluent before deposit to meet limitsFalseThe MDMER explicitly prohibits using additional water for the purpose of diluting effluent in order to comply with the prescribed limits; compliance must be achieved by treatment, not dilution.
3Must submit location plan, discharge design/maintenance, receiving water body nameTrueThis matches the MDMER's initial identification/notification requirements for each final discharge point submitted to the authorization officer.
4Acute lethality testing required monthly on a grab sampleFalseAcute lethality testing (rainbow trout and Daphnia magna) is a Schedule 5 requirement performed on a quarterly basis for most mines, not monthly – monthly sampling instead applies to the Schedule 4 deleterious-substance concentration and pH characterization. Check: confirm the current monitoring frequency table in MDMER Schedule 5, as frequency can vary with mine size/effluent volume.
5EPS 1/RM/14 required for each Daphnia magna acute lethality sampleTrueEPS 1/RM/14 is the correct Environment Canada Biological Test Method reference for Daphnia magna acute lethality testing (paired with EPS 1/RM/13 for rainbow trout), and is the method incorporated by reference in MDMER Schedule 5.