What's happening at Giant Mine? Spring 2025

Blessing of the Land Ceremony at the new Water Treatment Plant

Aecon Group Inc. (AWI) hosted a Blessing of the Land ceremony at the Water Treatment Plant on the Giant Mine site to officially open the summer construction season. Participants met at the Yellowknife Historical Society, toured the Water Treatment Plant, and returned to the museum for lunch and refreshments.

The Project team continues its work toward building and operating the new Water Treatment Plant. The interior walls and block work are now complete and the building will soon look finished from the outside, although interior work will continue. The Project team anticipates the Water Treatment Plant to open and start operating in 2026.

You can learn more about this year's work on the Water Treatment Plant, including in-water work expected this summer, on the Giant Mine Notices webpage.

Dust notice

The Project team reminds Yellowknife area residents that, during an especially windy spring and summer, the amount of visible dust in the environment increases. Not all dust in the community comes from the Giant Mine site. When dust originates at the Giant Mine site, it mainly comes from vehicle traffic on unpaved roads and from 4 on-site tailings ponds. A small amount comes from ongoing remediation activities.

The dust from the tailings at the Giant Mine site is non-toxic and has low concentrations of metals. The dust from the tailings ponds on site does not contain arsenic trioxide. However, as with exposure to all dusts, particulate matter in your respiratory system is potentially  hazardous to your health.

The Project team actively takes measures to reduce and control dust at the site. These measures include:

• visual inspections during routine security patrols
• stopping work that releases dust, particularly on high-wind days
• applying a dust control product to tailings ponds
• wetting tailings ponds
• applying calcium chloride to roads

The Project team continually monitors air quality in the communities of Yellowknife and Ndilǫ. They obtain real-time air quality measurements, and collect and test dust for metals, including arsenic. If metals are detected, the Project team will immediately assess the situation and take appropriate actions.

Members of the public can check the air quality status in real time on the Government of the Northwest Territories Air Quality Monitoring Network. Stations you can choose to view data from include those at:

• Giant Mine
• The Great Slave Lake Sailing Club Marina
• Niven
• Ndılǫ

To learn more visit Information about dust at the Giant Mine site.