VANCOUVER — The Supreme Court in British Columbia has ordered a pause of operations at a wastewater storage facility at the Mount Polley mine as an addition to the dam is challenged by a local First Nation.
The court’s decision issued Thursday orders the Mount Polley Mining Corp. not deposit mine tailings into a storage dam that is being raised before July 1.
A similar storage site at the mine in B.C.’s Cariboo region collapsed in August 2014, spilling about 25 million cubic metres of water and tailings into nearby waterways in one of the worst environmental disasters in B.C.
The ruling comes after the Xatsull First Nation applied for an emergency injunction to stop a four-metre addition on the tailings dam while the court hears a judicial review of the construction’s approval by the provincial government.
The Xatsull First Nation says it welcomes the court’s decision, and will argue during a hearing in June that the pause of tailing deposits should remain in place until the judicial review has been decided.
The B.C. government said it approved the addition on the dam to safely manage the spring runoff, adding that the project was reviewed by technical reviews experts and in consultation with First Nations.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 9, 2025.
Chuck Chiang, The Canadian Press
