Osisko held a community update Sept. 5 about its Cariboo Gold project which will see mining take place in Wells. The Wells Community Hall was filled with over 60 residents of the small town who came to share their concerns and learn more about the project.
Chief operations officer Eric Tremblay, project engineer Victor Gauthier and permitting and compliance coordinator Kelsey Dodd presented residents of Wells with an update on the design of the project, addressing some of the concerns raised in the past. The new design will be less visible throughout Wells, the model shown was grey and white with squares, blocky buildings. Osisko told residents the final design will be worked on with Wells and the preliminary design is just to show people a general idea of the complex.
Tremblay also said the buildings can be coloured to match the trees that will surround them, or have a projector in place that can change the colour of the outside to blend in throughout the season and have special shows for different events like Halloween.
They showed off a new tool they're building that will allow residents to see a rough design of the mine buildings from anywhere in Wells. When it's finished and released on their website, the tool will allow people to view the mine as originally proposed to residents in 2021, their new idea of the design and allow people to see it with the buildings as different colours and in different seasons.
But residents expressed concerns about light pollution. One asked if their ability to see the Milky Way at night would be affected by the mine's lights. The company representatives said they're working to ensure the lights of the building are directional to reduce light pollution and cause less of an impact to residents.
Another concern brought up was the housing Osisko has purchased in Wells. One resident said housing is hard to come by in Wells and the mine purchasing homes that sit empty feels wrong. Osisko representatives said they are working to renovate the homes for their staff and their goal isn't to make a profit on housing, it's to make a profit on gold.
As far as sound goes, the company told residents while construction on the building will be ongoing through day and night, they will only work on the buildings' interiors at night to prevent noise from disrupting people while they sleep. But for some, there were concerns about noise during the day.
"I can go for a walk in the forest and I can hear a mosquito," one resident said. "The drills drove me nuts."
All of the actual mining for the Cariboo Gold Project will be underground. The representatives of Osisko said some of the mines louder aspects will be kept underground too, including repair shops for equipment.
Residents asked the company how long the mine is expected to be in operation, Osisko said it's hard to say but it is estimated for 13 years. Depending on how much gold is there it could be much longer though.
When the mine does eventually finish its operations, Tremblay said Osisko will be incentivized to return the area to the state it was before they arrived. They said the company is required to put money into an account they cannot touch and they only get the money back as they start to return the site to the way it was. They said if there are any buildings Wells would like to keep after Osisko finishes operation, they'd be happy to leave them there for the district to use.
The staffing plan is to have workers do 12-hour shifts in the mine for two weeks and then get two weeks off. They're hoping to hire locally first and then expand outward as needed for staff, they said.
The company's representatives said they are committed to working with the community in Wells to ensure they're as comfortable as they can be with the mining project. Wells' mayor, Ed Coleman, told The Observer he thinks Osisko is doing a great job consulting with the community.
"They've been thorough, the province has been thorough and they'll, from what I'm hearing tonight, continue to be thorough," Coleman said after the meeting. "I'm really pleased that they have the community office here that anybody can come to."
Coleman said the District of Wells will be hiring a full-time employee to monitor the mine for council. They'll also be releasing a document for the public to review that outlines the potential effects a project like the mine can have for Wells and potential solutions to problems that may arise.
"I've dealt with a lot of mines in my career. This is the most thorough project I witnessed," Coleman said. "They have been really good at working with people that are for it, against it, in between and they're all about sitting down and hearing the concerns, answering the questions."
Coleman believes the project will be a massive benefit for Wells and the Cariboo region.
In an email statement to The Observer, Osisko communications manager Jill Wilson said the company appreciates the public engagement.
“We’d like to thank everyone who joined us at the meeting. The community’s input over the years has helped us to optimize the design of the mine site complex," she said, adding the company is looking forward to further engaging with Wells throughout the mine's planning process and operations.
