Building a sustainable future at Britannia Beach
EPCOR is helping to end a century of heavy metal pollution flowing from British Columbia's historic Britannia Mine.
In early 2006, EPCOR commissioned a water treatment facility that captures heavy metal pollution contained in the water from Britannia Mine. Located between Vancouver and Whistler on B.C.'s Sea-to-Sky highway, the abandoned copper mine previously deposited over 600 kilograms of contaminants a day into the marine environment of Howe Sound.
The new facility is a result of a unique partnership between the B.C. government and EPCOR.
The mine's history
- 1888 - A copper discovery on Britannia Mountain by Dr. A.A. Forbes leads to the development of the Britannia Mine
- 1929 - Boom times for the mine as it becomes the largest producer of copper in the British Commonwealth
- 1962 - The Anaconda Mining Company purchases the property and production of the mine
- 1974 - High operating costs and taxes force the mine to close
- 1975 - The B.C. Museum of Mining is opened to the public on the site
- 1989 - The Britannia Mine site is designated a National Historic Site and the Museum is designated a B.C. Historic Landmark
- 2001 - The University of British Columbia (UBC), with support from the property owner, completes construction of a concrete plug at th 2200 level, preventing direct discharge to Jane and Britannia Creeks, redirecting it to the 4100 level portal
- 2005 - EPCOR completes construction and begins operation of a new water treatment facility to remove heavy metal pollutants prior to discharge into Howe Sound
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The problem
Naturally-occurring metal sulphide ores have been exposed to air and rain through seventy years of mining at the site.
The resulting chemical and biochemical reactions produce concentrated acidic, metal-contaminated water. This contamination, known as acid rock drainage (ARD), exited the old mine and flowed untreated into Howe Sound. The Britannia Mine site was one of the largest heavy metal pollution sources in North America.
The solution
In late 2004, through a Request for Proposals process, the province chose EPCOR to finance, design, construct and operate a water treatment plant on the site to meet strict new water effluent regulations. EPCOR developed the plant's treatment systems with a focus on high operational reliability. The solution combines EPCOR's unique expertise in both powe and water - electricity from the mine's discharge flow is used to help power the treatment plant.
The plant was built and removing heavy metals from mine water within eight months.
Operational facts:
- In 2006, the facility treated four billion litres of water and removed over 255,000 kilograms of heavy metal contaminants.
- The amount of copper removed in the facility’s first year of operation was the equivalent of preventing over 30 million pennies from entering Howe Sound.
- Heavy metal contaminants removed include copper, iron, zinc, aluminum, manganese, and cadmium.
- An on-site micro-turbine driven by the outflow of the mine water will provide a source of renewable electricity for the treatment facility.
- EPCOR uses an advanced computer monitoring system to ensure safe and reliable operations 24/7. A Discovery Centre at the plant will offer the public an opportunity to learn more about the on-going work to clean and restore this historic area.
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A successful partnership
The partnership between EPCOR and B.C.'s Ministry of Agriculture and Lands maximizes value, minimizes cost to taxpayers and raises the bar on innovation and accountability.
EPCOR and its partners undertook the development risks and in less than one year, a long-term environmental issue has been resolved through creativity, innovation and partnerships. The Britannia Mine water treatment plant is an integral part of the environmental remediation of the abandoned copper mine site.
An agreement was reached with the province that identifies performance measures EPCOR must achieve annually.