Fifteen charges under the federal Fisheries Act have been laid against Imperial Metals Corp. more than a decade after a tailings pond collapsed at the Mount Polley mine, spilling more than 20 million cubic metres of waste water into B.C. Interior waterways.
In a statement, the B.C. Conservation Officer Service said it worked with the Department of Fisheries and Environment and Climate Change Canada to investigate possible contraventions of the act.
It said both federal and B.C.’s prosecution services have confirmed the charges by direct indictment.
The collapse of the dam at the gold and copper mine on Aug. 4, 2014, is considered one of the largest environmental disasters in provincial history.
The Conservation Officer Service said Mount Polley Mining Corp. and Wood Canada Ltd. face the same charges and all three companies are due to make a court appearance on Dec. 18.
Imperial Metals said in a statement the company received the indictment this week and as the matter is before the courts it won’t be making further comment.
Energy and Climate Solutions Minister Adrian Dix said during an unrelated news conference on Tuesday morning that he had not yet seen the charges, and was unable to comment.
CBC News has contacted the Department of Fisheries for more information.
The failure at the Mount Polley tailings dam, about 170 kilometres south of Prince George, B.C., sent toxic mine waste into nearby lakes and streams.
Mine records filed with Environment Canada reported that hundreds of tonnes of arsenic, lead, copper and nickel flowed out in the sludge.