AMAX Will Flush Tailings Into B.C. Bay

The American Metals Climax Company (AMAX) once again is stirring protests of indigenous people and environmentalists (see Multinational Monitor, July, 1980). The Canadian government granted AMAX a special permit in January, 1979 to deposit 100 million metric tons of molybdenum tailings over the next 25 years into Alice Arm, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean in British Columbia. The Nishga Indians depend on Alice Arm for fish, which they eat and market.

The Nishga Indians as well as the Anglican Church of Canada and environmental groups are protesting the special permit, demanding a public inquiry. In response, the Canadian government has set up a scientific panel to review ,the issue and make a recommendation before April 1, when production is scheduled to begin.

AMAX denies its mine will have an adverse environmental effect, claiming the mine's discharge is only "sand." The amount of waste the mine would discharge is "much less than the daily discharge of the nearby Nass River and is composed of virtually the same material," an AMAX spokesperson said.