To the editor:
I fail to understand why special interest groups continue to sensationalize the Mount Polley mine incident.
Yes, a dam failed and thousands of litres of water and mud knocked out a swath of trees and deposited them into Polley Lake. However, the water was not toxic as many claim and, from my understanding, the mixture contains minimal amounts of naturally occurring minerals, metals, rock, sand, silt and mud.
Yes, the site looks horrendous. But it’s not unlike any other naturally occurring mud slide that happens regularly all over B.C. Thankfully no one was hurt or injured, and the water tests continue to confirm that the water in the creeks and lakes is fit for human consumption and perfectly safe for fish.
Scientists also continue to confirm that arsenic, mercury and lead levels fall well below the maximum allowable limits for drinking water.
Today, people are once again watching fish jump in the lake and can drink the water, and there is every reason to expect that in a year natural vegetation re-growth will render the incident almost undetectable.
Yes, we need to find out why this happened and do what we can to ensure that it does not happen again. But I am not going to let all the “anti-everything” alarmists out there continue to suggest that we shut down an industry so many families rely on.
Instead, let’s make it better.
Donald Leung,
Burnaby
