Victor mine to receive reclamation award

De Beers Group has announced that it is the recipient of the 2022 Tom Peters Memorial Mine Reclamation Award, presented by the Ontario Chapter of the Canadian Land Reclamation Association (CLRA), for work now underway to close Victor mine. 

The Victor mine is located in the James Bay lowlands in northern Ontario and operated between 2008-19. By the end of 2023, Victor mine is expected to be the first diamond mine in Canada to complete active closure.  

The Victor mine site is situated within a wetland complex and constructed mine rock pads had to be built to facilitate a mining operation. To reclaim these features, they will be shaped and sequentially covered to ensure long-term stability and allow passive sustainable function was implemented. Nearly a decade of university-led research programs to examine a multitude of aspects for mine closure have been completed. 

Progressive reclamation began in 2014 with establishment of an Attawapiskat First Nation youth-based seed collection program to harvest seeds from the region and overcome the lack of commercially available and climate adapted stock. This work continued until 2019, providing the source for more than 1.4 million trees and shrubs planted on the site. Many of these seedlings were grown on site.  

To accelerate natural recovery, dewatering systems were reversed to refill the pit with water in less than two years. Over 35 hectares of aquatic habitat has been created using bioengineering in place of synthetics, and floating wetland complexes to improve habitat. Other innovations included use of an agricultural drone to seed large areas of the site, satellite monitoring for stability, and use of aerial imagery to scan plant health. Following the end of active closure, long-term monitoring will continue until at least 2039. 

Including a donation of fire trucks to Attawapiskat and Moosonee communities, joint 

ventures for recycling were formed with First Nations partners resulting in over 600 truckloads of materials being salvaged from the site and transported to recycling facilities, with some of the proceeds going to benefit community development projects. 

For further information about De Beers Group, visit www.debeersgroup.com.