Research into the consequences of the Mount Polley Mine tailings pond breach will continue for at least the next 3 years.
That’s because the lead researchers, Dr. Ellen Petticrew and Dr. Phil Owens of the University of Northern B.C. have received $800,000 in additional funding through the Federal Government’s Environmental Damages Fund.
One of the areas being explored has to do with a “fluffy white” sentiment covering areas of Quesnel Lake’s bottom.
“It doesn’t occur naturally.” Dr. Petticrew said indicating the have taken 32 core samples of the lake bed and found more of the sentiment near the breach site.
Dr. Owens tried to answer a common question: if the fish in the lake are safe to eat.
“I’m not sure that’s a question we can answer at this moment in time.” noting that there have been a number of safe test results of the water and the fish.
However Dr. Owens says it can take years for the results to be known for sure because it can take years for the particles to move through the food chain from the phytoplankton on to the fish.
“One thing to bear in mind, is some of the resident fish, for example the trout in the lake can sometimes live for several decades.”
With the extra funding and the help of researchers from both the student body at UNBC and other institutes, Petticrew and Owens hope to be able to determine the long-range impacts of the spill on the lake.
w/ files from Bob Duck MY CARIBOO NOW
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