Green Party Leader reacts to CEC report on Sio Silica
The Leader of the Green Party of Manitoba says she felt heard. Janine Gibson, who lives south of Steinbach, made that comment after reading the report submitted to the Manitoba government by the Clean Environment Commission (CEC). The CEC is advising that significant conditions be required, if the Manitoba government is to approve the proposed Sio Silica sand extraction project east of Anola. The CEC held public hearings in Steinbach in early March, before moving to Anola and then Beausejour. At those public hearings, the President and Chief Executive Officer for Sio Silica says gaining the necessary approvals for their proposed extraction project in southeastern Manitoba would pump more than one billion dollars into the Manitoba economy over the lifetime of the project. googletag.cmd.push(function() { if($(document).width()<900) { s = googletag.defineSlot('/50748803/stol-all-bigbox', [300, 250], 'div-gpt-1648064325258-bbm1'); s.setTargeting('URL', [window.location.pathname]); s.setTargeting('position', [1648064325258]) s.addService(googletag.pubads()); googletag.pubads().refresh([s], {changeCorrelator: false}); } }); Feisal Somji says they are targeting to remove 1.36 million tonnes per year, which works out to 1.06 per cent over the 24-year life of the mine. If this project is approved, Somji says the facility and operations will directly employ approximately 75 to 100 full-time people. In addition, there will be 100 to 200 indirect employment opportunities related to transportation, supplies and services. In its recommendations to the province, the CEC is advising that stringent conditions must be imposed for the proposed project to proceed. The commission's primary concern lies in the inadequate definition of risks posed to a vital source of drinking water in the region. Despite the proponent's geotechnical, hydrogeological, and environmental studies, the commission lacks sufficient confidence in the level of risk assessment. googletag.cmd.push(function() { if($(document).width()<900) { s = googletag.defineSlot('/50748803/stol-all-bigbox', [300, 250], 'div-gpt-1648064325258-bbm2'); s.setTargeting('URL', [window.location.pathname]); s.setTargeting('position', [1648064325258]) s.addService(googletag.pubads()); googletag.pubads().refresh([s], {changeCorrelator: false}); } }); Gibson says those against this project are mostly concerned about the impact this could have on drinking water. She is confident that not enough testing has been done to grant a license.
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