Community Notice: Soil Remediation Project Information Visits & Open House – September 20, 2024
NFN Resident Information Package – Soil Remediation Project – September 20, 2024
Frequently Asked Questions: Niobium Cleanup Project – Ontario Ministry of Transportation
Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission Fact Sheet on Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material (NORM)
Community Notice: Soil Remediation Project – April 16, 2024
Soil Remediation Project Open House Presentation Slides – May 15, 2024
Overview
Work resumed on the Soil Remediation Project in April 2024 in preparation to remove niobium ore tailings from the Nova Beaucage processing mill that operated for seven months in 1956 in the community of Yellek. The ore tailings from the mill were deposited at the mill site and the former gravel borrow pit north of Highway 17 (next to the Anishinabek Nation head office), now owned by the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO).
The material was later removed from the sites to construct roadbeds, spread locally via grading activities around the site, and used as fill at private residences throughout the 1970s and 1980s. All these residences were identified during the initial investigations and are part of the remediation plan.
Current Status
Remediation of four residential properties on NFN started in mid-July, along with work to remove contaminated material from the old Nova Beaucage Road allowance. This work is nearly complete, and the material excavated from these sites is currently being stored on a vacant lot in the Bineshii Business Park that has been lined with geotextile matting to safely contain it. The stockpile is securely tarped at all times.
The Ministry of Mines is waiting for approval from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) to haul the contaminated material from NFN to the Agnew Lake Tailings Management Area (ALTMA). The ALTMA is a federally regulated site that is managed by the Ministry of Mines while the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission regulates the site by closely monitoring the maintenance and environmental performance.
CNSC is still reviewing the planned construction operations at the Agnew Lake Tailings Management Area in accordance with the existing Waste Nuclear Substance Licence. The MTO is working to identify an alternative disposal site in case approvals for the ALTMA site are delayed or denied.
Until approval to haul the material to the Agnew Lake Tailings Management Area or another approved disposal site is in place, NFN has halted any further excavation and storage of the contaminated material on NFN lands.
Contaminated material from the former mill site and the MTO borrow pit next to the Anishinabek Nation remains untouched – only site preparation activities have been completed.
Information Visits & Open House
Residents of Nipissing First Nation who wish to arrange a private meeting with members of the Soil Remediation Project team are encouraged to contact the Community Infrastructure Department at (705) 753-2050 ext. 1285.
These meetings offer an opportunity to receive an information package about the Soil Remediation Project and to ask questions directly to the project team and technical staff. Meetings can take place in your home, at the Duchesnay Hall, or at the Administration Building in Garden Village.
Residents are also encouraged to attend an open house information session on Monday, October 7 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm at the Nbisiing Secondary School Gymnasium. Members of the project team and technical staff will be in attendance to provide more information and answer questions from community members. Light refreshments will be provided.
Project Background & Funding
When NFN was developing its Land Code, the contaminated sites were included in an Individual Agreement between NFN and Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) to secure funding for the clean-up.
In 2015, the MTO committed to clean up its site in collaboration with NFN and ISC. MTO and ISC will each fund contamination cleanup and associated work done on their respective property with costs split based on the proportion of work at each contamination site.
The estimated cost of the project is $12.8 million, with $4.6 million for the MTO portion (35%) and $8.2 million for the NFN portion (65%). A cost-sharing agreement is in place with ISC to fund the NFN portion of the work.
Location of Disposal Site & NFN Work Sites
The contaminated soil that will be removed from three work sites and the four identified private residences on NFN will be hauled to an approved and regulated disposal site.
Proposed Disposal Site: Agnew Lake Tailings Management Area
The Agnew Lake Tailings Management Area (ALTMA) is located approximately 180km from Yellek, west of Sudbury. The niobium material coming from NFN would be used as “clean cap” to cover the more radioactive uranium tailings currently stored at the Agnew Lake site. An additional 12-15 cm of clean material and topsoil would then be placed on top of the NORM and then revegetated.
Work Sites: Nipissing First Nation
Site #1: Former Nova Beaucage Mine Site – 15,539 tonnes of contaminated material to be removed, along with concrete pad foundation.
Site #2: Section of Nova Beaucage Road at the corner of Ernest Avenue (18 tonnes) and the old Nova Beaucage Road allowance (7,080 tonnes). This road allowance was not part of the original project scope, but we are committed to cleaning up this area.
Site #3: MTO Lands east of Anishinabek Nation head office – former gravel borrow pit (11,409 tonnes)
Private Residences: 224 tonnes in total to be removed from four properties identified during initial investigations and included in the remediation plan. There are two residences in Garden Village, one in Yellek, and one in Duchesnay.
There is a Health and Safety Plan (HASP) for the three work sites and four private residences on NFN, and a separate HASP for the disposal site. The health and safety measures that have been implemented far exceed the standard requirements in order to protect community safety while this project is carried out.
The cleanup of MTO and Nipissing First Nation sites is expected to be complete by the end of 2025.
Project Updates
Should you have any questions or concerns related to the work taking place on Nipissing First Nation, please email [email protected] so that your inquiry can be directed to the appropriate contact or call:
| For project operations and progress updates: | For project background and environmental concerns: |
| Bruce McLeod, Special Projects Manager 705-498-2520 Gen Couchie, Business Operations Manager 705-471-1545 | Cathy McLeod, Land Manager 705-753-2922 ext. 1233 Curtis Avery, Environment Manager 705-753-2922 ext. 1290 |
For health and safety concerns:
Ray Alatalo, B.A.A. (Envir. Health), C.P.H.I. (C)
Environmental Public Health Officer for Indigenous Services Canada
705-698-4682
All other inquiries should be directed to [email protected].
“Irresponsible, historic actions have left Nbisiing with scars of contamination. In the 1950s, the Nova Beaucage Mill was built east of Yellek to process ore containing niobium and uranium. After only seven months of operation, the mill closed. Everything was left on site, and the radioactive, contaminated land was given back to us without any remediation. Radioactive materials from the mill were also stored at the Ontario Ministry of Transportation’s (MTO) abandoned sand pit on the north side of Highway 17. Unfortunately, ore stored at these sites was used for construction, landscaping, and roads in and around the community.” – from NFN Environmental Management Plan, Contaminated Sites Technical Tearaway
Work Site #3 – Staging Area in Bineshii Business Park (next to Anishinabek Nation head office), May 15, 2024. Installation of geotextile* matting to safely contain the material.
* Geotextile fabric is a permeable textile material that serves several functions, including separating material to prevent the mixing of different soil layers and filtration by allowing water to pass through while retaining soil particles. NORM is not water soluble, meaning that it doesn’t dissolve or form a solution when mixed with water. Instead, it maintains its independence and essentially floats to the top because it is less dense than water.
