NWT RESEARCH DATABASE

Regions: North Slave Region

Tags: contaminants, mining, mining impacts, environmental baseline, mine development

Objective(s): The purpose of the baseline program field studies is to characterize existing conditions in the project vicinity and surrounding region to support project planning, permitting, and development of a proposed lithium mine.

Project Description: This licence has been issued for the scientific research application No. 5636. The purpose of the baseline program field studies is to: characterize existing conditions in the project vicinity and surrounding region to support project planning, permitting, and development of a proposed lithium mine. One continuous air quality monitoring station will be installed to measure ambient concentrations of particulate matter of various size fractions including total suspended particulate (TSP), particulate matter less than 10 microns (PM10), and particulate matter less than 2.5 microns (PM2.5). Power for the air quality monitoring station will be provided by a bank of solar panels and batteries. The air quality monitoring station will operate unattended, with occasional attendance by members of the research team to download data and inspect the equipment. The light and noise baseline study will consist of taking visual observations and photographs to support desktop analysis. Instantaneous flow measurements will be collected at select watercourses. Ausenco will evaluate conditions at each surface water station to determine how and where flow measurements can be collected safely and effectively. Flow measurements will be collected using either the velocity-area method or the salt dilution gauging method, and generally follow the procedures presented in the Manual of British Columbia Hydrometric Standards. Flow will be measured by collecting all stream flow in a 20-L container and recording the time to fill the?container. The velocity-area method is a commonly used method for measuring flow in low to moderate gradient channels and can be used in small streams and large rivers. In smaller streams, measurements are collected by wading and using a current (velocity) meter. Wading measurements are limited at high flows by safe instream working conditions (i.e., depths and/or velocities are suitable to allow safe stream access). Total discharge at each flow measurement location is calculated using the area and velocity from a?series of point measurements taken along the cross-section of the stream at each station. At each station, a cross section is established that is perpendicular to the flow, and the wetted stream channel width is determined using a tape measure fixed to the top of the bank on each side. Dilution gauging methods uses the addition of a tracer to the stream and discharge is measured by determining the dilution of the tracer. Dilution methods require complete mixing of the tracer and are best suited to steep streams where turbulence aids lateral and vertical mixing. For this field program, salt injection of salt brine will be used when possible. A salt slug of known mass is input at the injection location and the electrical conductivity (ECT), response is measured at a downstream measurement site. In situ field measurements (i.e., dissolved oxygen, specific conductivity, pH, and temperature) and water samples from three lake depths will be collected from approximately 24 sampling locations. Lake samples will be collected using a depth sampler (e.g., Kemmerer, Go-Flo) for laboratory analyses of water quality parameters in addition to phytoplankton biomass and taxonomy. Samples will also be collected for zooplankton biomass and taxonomic analyses using a conical, mesh zooplankton net and calibrated flowmeter. Sediment samples will be collected for laboratory analyses (particle size, nutrients, metals) using an Ekman grab, in addition to lake benthos samples. Geochemical samples (lithologies and numbers to be determined) will be collected from diamond drill cores, hydrogeological and geotechnical drill cores at intervals to be specified. The geochemistry program will include collecting fresh drill core samples, overburden/borrow materials, seep samples, surface water and groundwater samples. Each sample comprised approximately 2?kg to ensure adequate sample mass for static and possible kinetic testing. Composite drill core samples will be collected over interval ranges greater than 0.5 m that do not show major changes in lithology, mineralogy, texture, veining or sulphide occurrence along the interval length. The samples will be collected from economic ore/low grade ore from the exploration areas indicated in the mineral licenses. Except using weak acids for fizz testing, no chemical reagents will be used to preserve or handle the drill core samples. Exposure of overburden and bedrock materials from diamond drilling and trenching will be placed in locations with relatively minor leaching and away from sensitive resources. Approximately 24 monitoring wells will be installed at select locations across five potential mine sites. The monitoring wells will be screened in unconsolidated overburden soils and shallow bedrock. Groundwater samples will be collected on four separate occasions over one year and submitted for laboratory analyses to establish baseline groundwater quality and to investigate potential groundwater flow paths and groundwater discharge receptors. Any drilling near creeks/ponds/lakes will include turbidity monitoring of the waterbody during drilling to monitor potential impacts from the drilling. Drilling will not occur within waterbodies. Soil cuttings from the boreholes will be disposed to ground distant from waterbodies such that precipitation runoff does not mobilize soils into the waterbodies. Monitoring-well development water and groundwater sampling purge water will not be disposed to ground near waterbodies. Monitoring wells will be constructed such that bentonite seals are covered with a minimum of 30cm of backfill to prevent casual access by wildlife. The fish and fish habitat baseline study will describe the historical and baseline fish and fish habitat conditions in watercourses and waterbodies to support the Environmental Assessment submission. Data collected from this study will be used to assess potential effects to fish and fish habitat from the proposed mine. This study will include assessing fish habitat, benthic invertebrate community, fish community, as well as evaluating seasonal usage of available fish habitat and the suitability of habitat to support various life stages and fish species throughout the year. Trapping and netting fish will be required for assessment of health, age, size, abundance, in addition to fish tissue sampling on select individuals for analysis of metals, mercury, and organics. According to the high-resolution permafrost probability model all sites are in the extensive discontinuous (50-90%) permafrost zone using the traditional model and in the 60-70% extensive discontinuous permafrost zone using the Probability Model. This means more than half of the natural landscape area is likely to be underlain by permafrost. However, the Permafrost Probability models are not designed to predict permafrost at the site level, as permafrost is also affected by factors such as the nature of surficial materials, vegetation, and differential snow accumulation, etc., which may affect the ground temperature. The investigation program will comprise the initial drilling program which will entail drilling of boreholes, to measure the permafrost temperature and establish the spatial distribution of permafrost, collection of samples for laboratory identification of grounds and estimation of their state, measurements, thermal conductivities, specific heat, etc., collection of data, analysis of data and computer modelling of heat transfer, calibration of the models. Sound assessments of permafrost changes and the separation of short-term variations from long-term trends or local variations from regional patterns require reliable and comparable data measured at representative sites over long-term periods. Such time series make practical use of the essential climate variables of the Global Climate Observing System: to detect change patterns and assess impacts, to improve process understanding, to validate and calibrate corresponding models, and to put shorter time series, or those locations devoid of data in the context of long-term trends. Long-term climate-related monitoring of permafrost relies on ground temperatures measured in boreholes since they are the only direct, quantitative, and comparable thermal observations. When permafrost temperatures approach 0°C in ice-bearing permafrost, however, latent heat uptake needed for ground ice melting significantly reduces temperature changes. Additional measurements that are sensitive to changes in ground ice and unfrozen water content are required to observe changes within the permafrost until the frozen material has thawed completely. Soil characterization and mapping will be completed during the field program. Initial desktop study and review of the existing information, including historical geological and hydrogeological investigations, as well as information on aquifers and known spatial distribution of muskeg and other soils. It is anticipated that preliminary soils characterization will be undertaken in conjunction with permafrost drilling and vegetation surveys. Field personnel will complete soil logging and visual characterization of soils during drilling, and geotechnical sample collection, including field and lab testing, soil and rock classification, and determination of mechanical and geotechnical properties will be completed as required. The project is located within an area identified, under Agriculture Canada’s “Soils of Canada” mapping as primarily brunisolic soils, and there is potential for presence of muskeg throughout the project area. At this stage it is intended that soil profile data will be collected concurrent with the permafrost drilling investigation (i.e., soil strata mapping and characterization during borehole logging) and vegetation plot program. It is anticipated that soil profile assessments will be completed using hand augering and direct push probe equipment at the testplot locations (approximately 20 locations have been assumed for vegetation testplots). Soil profile findings will inform on the requirements for further geotechnical and geochemical characterization. Wetland and vegetation surveys in the Project area will be conducted during summer 2023 and 2024 for the purpose of informing baseline conditions. Data will be collected to support mapping of ecosites, species distribution, species occurrence, and structural stage. The data collected during the surveys will also provide information on species abundance and plant community richness. Approximately 20 vegetation plots across the project area will be used to collect data on all vascular and non-vascular plants identified to the species level, where practical, and otherwise to the genus level, species cover, and structural stage. Lichens and bryophytes that cannot be identified in the field will be collected and sent to specialists for identification. Vascular plants that cannot be identified in the field will be collected for identification at a later point. Wetlands identified in spatial data will be ground truth and classified following the Canadian Wetland Classification System. Wildlife surveys will focus on gathering information about Species at Risk, migratory and resident species, and culturally-significant species (e.g., game species, Caribou, etc.) within the Project area. These surveys will be conducted throughout 2023 and 2024. Culturally-significant species and relevant Traditional Ecological Knowledge will be recorded during upcoming consultation with local communities. Autonomous audio recording units (ARUs), remote cameras, terrestrial surveys and incidental field observations will be used to capture information about habitat-use, as well. These surveys and their relevance are further defined below. Audible-range and ultrasonic audio recorders will be deployed to capture species of interest. ARUs will be deployed and maintained on a 4-8 week schedule throughout the spring, summer, and fall of 2023 and 2024 to capture sounds from birds, amphibians, some small mammals (audible), and bats (ultrasonic). Recorder placement will focus on areas of high biodiversity, any habitat suitable for species-at-risk and culturally-significant species, capturing a variety of sub-habitats, and ensuring wetlands and waterbodies have adequate coverage. Remote cameras will be deployed and maintained year-round in 2023 and 2024 to understand movement of mammals through the Project area. Some game birds may be captured incidentally. Attention will be paid to the angle of the camera to capture both large- and medium-sized animals. Camera placement will focus on areas with relevant habitat attributes for mammalian subjects (e.g., edge habitats, game trails, riparian, etc.) Initially in 2023, passive audio recording and photography techniques will be honed to broadly capture as many species as possible, programmed to record long-term for good temporal resolution, and will be moved throughout the study area to improve spatial resolution. In 2024, passive ARU and camera capture strategies may be adjusted slightly to focus on specific habitats of concern, species-at-risk, and culturally-significant species discovered through the consultation process. All photos and recordings will be analyzed by trained observers with expert review. Terrestrial ground surveys will be conducted in 2024 to assess for the presence of wildlife features (e.g., mineral licks, stick nests, dens, etc.) and species that vocalize infrequently or cannot be captured using the above audio and visual methods (e.g., some raptors, some small mammals). Non-acoustic bird and herptile species of the Northwest Territories (e.g. vultures, herons, salamanders, reptiles, etc.) are not known to occur in the Project area. Terrestrial sweeps, consultation with the community, and maintaining a list of incidental species observed during site visits will serve as safeguard against any data-deficiencies in current range information. As audio recordings and photography will be autonomous, they do not require direct operation by a person in close proximity to wildlife. Also, the resultant files will not be shared widely for profit. With these conditions of the research in mind, a wildlife research permit is required over a wildlife observation permit. As all techniques are passive, including terrestrial survey observations, no direct interaction or intervention with wildlife is required. No wildlife handling permit is sought at this time. A Class 2 Archaeology Permit Application has been submitted to the Prince Of Wales Northern Heritage Centre (PWNHC) by Lifeways of Canada Ltd., NWT archaeological permit holder Dr. Dan Meyer. A field assessment of high archaeological potential areas within the project area will be conducted and archaeological sites will be recorded that meet the definition of an archaeological resource (i.e., Archaeological Sites Act; tangible evidence of human activity more than 50 years old is archaeological). The field assessment will be a pedestrian survey and will include a shovel testing program. If any archaeological sites are encountered, these will be recorded to a high level of detail through mapping, measurements, GPS recording, and photography. If archaeological artifacts are recovered a representative sample will be collected, analysed, and submitted to the PWNHC. A comprehensive Engagement Plan is in development to ensure proper communication to various stakeholders, rights holders, and community organizations (referred to herein as potential affected parties), following the guidelines of the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board (MVEIRB). The Engagement Plan will outline Li-FT’s proposed process and approach to communication and information sharing between Li-FT, MVEIRB, and potentially affected parties. The current list of potentially affected parties includes - but is not limited to – Yellowknives Dene First Nation, Akaitcho Dene First Nation, Lutselk’e Dene First Nation, Deninu K ´ u´e ´ First Nation, Tlicho Government, North Slave Métis Alliance, Pontoon Lake, Ingraham Trail Cabin Owners, and a CIRNAC Inspector. The Li-FT engagement team has already contacted key potentially affected parties, with an increased effort currently being planned with the expertise of Det’on Cho Environmental and Ausenco. The Engagement Plan will also consider different types of engagement (i.e., technical meetings, surveys, open houses, etc.) to ensure that there are opportunities for all potentially affected parties to be involved in the process. Results of the baseline program and EA development will be communicated regularly to the potentially affected parties, as well as any requests or questions from the potentially affected parties to the research team. The fieldwork for this study will be conducted from July 29, 2023 to December 31, 2023.