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ANNEXES – BACKGROUND PAPERS (NOTE –Given the size of the files, the following documents have been submitted as separate files) 1. Tine Rossing (Ecolibrio): Water Resources and Climate Change in the Xeni Gwet’in Caretaker Area 2. Deb Delong (Orman Consulting): Climate Change Impacts on Forests and Vegetation in the Xeni Gwet’in Caretaker Area 3. Wayne McCrory, RPBio: Climate Change and Wildlife and Wild Horse Impacts in the Xeni Gwet’in Caretaker Area 4. Richard Holmes (Cariboo Envirotech Ltd.): The Impacts of Climate Change on the Fishery Resource in the Xeni Gwet’in Caretaker Area 87
Memorandum To: Federal Review Panel for the Prosperity Gold-Copper Project <strong>From</strong>: Ann Maest, PhD; Cameron Wobus, PhD; Constance Travers, MS; James Holmes, MS; Jeff Morris, PhD, Stratus Consulting Inc. cc: Chief Bernie Elkins, Tsilhqot’in National Government; Chief Anne Louie, Williams Lake Indian Band Date: 4/16/2010 Subject: Information and arguments to be presented at Prosperity technical sessions The Tsilhqot’in National Government and the Williams Lake Indian Band retained our company, Stratus Consulting Inc. of Boulder, Colorado, to review the Prosperity Gold-Copper Mine Project environmental impact statement (EIS). On November 9, 2009, we provided our initial comments on the hydrometeorology model that Taseko Mines Ltd. and their contractors, Knight Piésold (together, the Proponents), used to make predictions about future water quantity and quality issues at the mine (see Document #1345). The Proponents have provided some responses to our initial observations. In the technical sessions during the week of April 26, 2010, we will reiterate and expand our critique of the Prosperity plan. Stratus Consulting has investigated contaminant releases from hundreds of hard-rock mine sites worldwide, including in Canada, the United States, Europe, Central America, Africa, South America, and Asia. In the combined experience of the authors of this memorandum, we have not seen an open pit copper mine with a waste rock and tailings storage facility (TSF) in a temperate climate that has not adversely impacted downstream and downgradient water quality. We will provide the panel with specific case studies from our collective experience that demonstrate that mine proponents routinely underestimate the environmental impacts of proposed mines, and that downgradient and downstream contaminant releases are not uncommon. As we outline in the following sections, we will discuss with the panel in greater detail some of the errors and uncertainties in the proponents’ EIS that make its predictions unreliable. After reviewing the EIS and subsequent responses to comments from the Proponents, we conclude that it is likely that the mine as proposed will release mine-related contaminants, including acidity, metals, metalloids, sulfate, and nitrogen compounds, into groundwater and surface water. These contaminants are likely to adversely impact salmonid (trout and salmon) fisheries at least in Fish Creek and the Taseko River. Dr. Ann Maest will attend the water quality and quantity sessions on Monday and Tuesday, April 26�27. Dr. Maest is an environmental geochemist who specializes in mine site geochemistry. She coauthored a comprehensive examination of predicted versus actual water quality impacts at large mine sites in the United States. Other authors of this memorandum will assist Dr. Maest via teleconference. SC12041
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file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settin
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SESSION-SPECIFIC COMMENTS & REQUEST
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Attachment A Written Submission for
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Attachment B Written Submission for
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Education Attachment D Dr. Gordon H
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3 Prosperity EA Review. Taseko Mine
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Prosperity Mine Aquatic Impact Asse
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4 • Remain stable and capable of
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something that is proposed and ‘p
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adjacent meadow or lowland areas ar
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Concluding Comments The proposed co
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The following briefing on mine-rela
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Impact of Shift/Rotation Schedule o
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Impact of Shift/Rotation Schedule o
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Boom/Bust Cycle of Mining Industry
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Social Change in Cohesion of Commun
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Social Change in Cohesion of Commun
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Impacts on Culture • Consequences
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Impacts on Community Resources •
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Impacts on Community Resources Incr
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On the Positive Side on Things…
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LITERATURE CITED 1 Heiler, K., Pick
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23 Story, K. and L.C. Hamilton. 200
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AN INDEPENDENT REVIEW OF THE TERRES
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I. GENERAL APPROACH & OVERVIEW BY M
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A. REVIEW OF PROPOSED TASEKO LAKE/W
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occasionally used for wild horse do
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9 with other direct and indirect mo
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11 grizzly bear mortality that I pr
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13 mortality as a result. I predict
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LITERATURE CITED: 15 Austin, M.A.,
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17 Wakkinen, W.L. and B. Allen-John
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� Forestry-wildlife research �
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� Spirit Bear (Cross-Country Cana
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McCrory, W. 2006. Bear hazard asses
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McCrory, W. 1997a. Preliminary eval
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2010 Xeni Gwet’in Community‐bas
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY TABLE OF CONTENTS
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iii
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These longer‐term impacts could w
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Adaptation to climate change is typ
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5. Develop a realistic and practica
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Conclusions concerning the impact o
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Awareness raising and capacity buil
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3.2. Geography The study area is lo
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The XGCA is a remote, wilderness ar
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Figure 3: XGCA BEC Zones 14
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station closest to the Study Area w
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• Overall: Winter weather has got
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Source: Theo Mlynowski, UNBC Precip
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Figure 7: Comparison of Mean Annual
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Gwet’in Territory. It should be n
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Glaciers 28 Like snowmelt, glaciers
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Table 7: Research studies ongoing i
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interation under different scenario
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elatively uniform climate are calle
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Box 2: The importance of curre nt a
Page 173 and 174: Box 3: Forest Fire Hazard in the XG
Page 175 and 176: will likely be scattered Douglas‐
Page 177 and 178: • Effects of climate change: Kinn
Page 179 and 180: • Whitebark Pine: Of the two tree
Page 181 and 182: This section provides a summary of
Page 183 and 184: Past climate changes and their impa
Page 185 and 186: Projected Climate Changes and Impac
Page 187 and 188: system. They are relatively healthy
Page 189 and 190: 6.2. Health and Safety At present,
Page 191 and 192: The Xeni Gwet’in depend on a vari
Page 193 and 194: obligated to finance these repairs
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Page 197 and 198: they traditionally have as well as
Page 199 and 200: • Dam and store water at Abelache
Page 201 and 202: 8.3. Water Supply Protection and Co
Page 203 and 204: so no further elaboration is requir
Page 205 and 206: • Re‐introduce fire and allow n
Page 207 and 208: Biodiversity Protection and Conserv
Page 209 and 210: Preserve Wild Plants & the Habitats
Page 211 and 212: Water Supply Protection and Conserv
Page 213 and 214: Increase Preservation of Wild and C
Page 215 and 216: Adaptation Objective Develop Nature
Page 217: Adaptation Strategies into Local Go
Page 220 and 221: Ecolibrio (2009). Xeni Gwet’in Co
Page 222 and 223: Nelitz³, M. and M. Porter. 2009c.
Page 226 and 227: Stratus Consulting Memorandum (4/16
Page 242: Stratus Consulting Memorandum (4/16
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From: on behalf of Panel Registry Subject: FW: TNG registration of ...

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