Obed Mountain coal mine
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Obed Mountain Coal Mine was an open-pit thermal coal mine near Hinton, Alberta, Canada.[1]
Following a series of temporary closures due to low coal prices in the early 2000s, and a coal slurry spill in 2013, the mine was permanently closed.
Location
The map below shows the approximate location of the now-closed mine.
Background
Operations at Obed Mountain Mine began in 1984.[1] As of 2006, Coal Valley Resources Inc. owned and operated the mine, however, in 2014, Coal Valley was purchased by Westmoreland Coal and was amalgamated into Prairie Mines & Royalty ULC.[2][3][4]
The mine, which was a dragline-and-shovel operation, produced export-quality thermal coal for the international market.[1]
On several occasions, Obed Mountain Mine was put on care and maintenance, including in 2003 as a result of declining coal prices.[1] Although it reopened in 2009 to meet increased demand for coal at higher prices, production was paused yet again in November 2012 due to another dip in coal prices which made the mine too costly to operate.[1]
Environmental Controversy & Litigation
Ironically, on October 31, 2013, an estimated 670 million litres of waste water flooded from a wastewater containment pond at the Obed Mountain mine, resulting in a significant coal slurry spill that contaminated Alberta's Athabasca River system.[5]
Two years later, the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) laid charges against the mine's then-owner operator, Coal Valley Resources and its parent company, Sherritt Coal. In 2017, Prairie Mines & Royalty ULC (formerly known as Coal Valley Resources) was found guilty on two counts of violating the Fisheries Act and was fined $3.5 million for the 2013 spill.[5]
Closure and Reclamation
While it isn't clear what year Obed Mountain permanently closed, operations ceased following the 2013 spill, and by 2017, it was announced that Westmoreland was decommissioning and reclaiming the mine's land.[2][3]
As of December 2012, approximately 624 hectares (approximately one-third of the total mine area) had been reclaimed and converted to permanent vegetation, commercial forest, and lake development.[1]
Mine Details
- Operator: Prairie Mines & Royalty ULC (formerly Coal Valley Resources Inc.)[1]
- Owner: Westmoreland[1]
- Location: 30 km east of Hinton, Alberta, Canada[1]
- Coordinates: 53.51800315, -117.3424698 (Approximate)
- Status: Retired
- Production: 3.2 million tonnes per annum[1]
- Total Resource:
- Total Reserves:
- Coal Type: Bituminous (Thermal)
- Mine Type: Surface, open-pit
- Start Year: 1984[2]
- Closure Year: 2013[2]
- Source of Financing:
Articles and resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 "About Obed Mountain Mine", Obed Mountain Mine website, Archived from the original on 12 August 2018, Accessed August 2023.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Docket No. 151258456P1 & 160061354P1 In the Provincial Court of Alberta Criminal Division Between: Her Majesty the Queen and Prairie Mines & Royalty ULC, Alberta Energy Regulator, 1 June 2017.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Guilty plea leads to $925,000 penalty for Obed Mountain Coal Mine spill", Alberta Energy Regulator website, 9 June 2017.
- ↑ "Mining Operations", Westmoreland Coal Company website, Archived from the original on 16 March 2016, Accessed August 2023.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Coal mine fined $3.5M for 2013 spill that contaminated Alberta river system", The Canadian Press, 9 June 2017.
