The Office of the Auditor General (OAG) released a progress audit on major mines, six years after the OAG released a scathing report on compliance and enforcement in the mining sector. While it is great to see some progress, the recent audit did not assess all recommendations from the 2016 report, and there are still gaps to adequately protect the environment and communities.
New expert analysis reveals that British Columbia is lagging behind other jurisdictions in Canada and globally when it comes to mine waste safety. The report looks at the B.C. government’s first ever Audit of Code Requirements for Tailings Storage Facilities, released last year, and makes recommendations on how to improve existing laws and regulations on mine waste safety to protect communities and the environment.
One of the things most British Columbians can agree on is that the polluter should actually pay. We recently conducted a poll that shows 90% of us want mining companies to clean up the environmental messes they make. Right now, that doesn’t always happen.
Four out of five British Columbians (80%) would support the BC government creating more protected areas with Indigenous peoples to meet the target of protecting 30% of the land and water by 2030, “even if that means reducing areas available for mining and forestry.”
