Sherritt-Gordon Mine is a defunct zinc and copper mine in

Sherridon Sherridon, Manitoba, is an unincorporated community in northern Manitoba, Canada. History Sherridon originated as the service centre for the nearby Sherritt Gordon Mine. The mine closed in 1952, resulting in the equipment and many of the work ...

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

, Canada, on the shore of

Kississing Lake Kississing Lake is a lake in northwestern Manitoba, Canada, approximately northeast of Flin Flon. The Kississing River drains it northeast into Flatrock Lake on the Churchill River. The community of Sherridon is on its eastern shores, and the ...

. Situated near

Flin Flon Flin Flon (pop. 5,185 in 2016 census; 4,982 in Manitoba and 203 in Saskatchewan) is a mining city, located on a correction line on the border of the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, with the majority of the city located withi ...

, the mine is located about northwest of the provincial capital city of

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

. Pollution from the mine contaminated Kississing Lake in what has been described as "one of the worst cases of acidic mine drainage in the world." In 1947, workers staged a months-long strike at the mine.

History

Geological exploration of the area began in 1899, followed by prospectors from the

area who were guided by local

Métis The Métis ( , , , ) are a mixed-race Indigenous people whose historical homelands include Canada's three Prairie Provinces extending into parts of Ontario, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and the northwest United States. They ha ...

. In 1923, deposits of copper-zinc sulphides were staked on the east shore of Kississing Lake, which were developed into the Sherritt-Gordon Mine. The mine operated from 1931 to 1951 producing zinc and copper with low amounts of gold and silver. On August 13, 1947, workers at the mine went on strike after pay negotiations with

Sherritt International Sherritt International is a Canadian resource company, based in Toronto, Ontario. Sherritt is a miner and refiner of nickel and cobalt. Sherritt is also the largest independent energy producer in Cuba. Sherritt’s common shares are listed on th ...

failed to make progress. The

Co-operative Commonwealth Federation The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF; , FCC) was a federal democratic socialism, democratic socialistThe following sources describe the CCF as a democratic socialist political party: * * * * * * and social democracy, social-democ ...

political party objected to the influx of the

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; , GRC) is the Law enforcement in Canada, national police service of Canada. The RCMP is an agency of the Government of Canada; it also provides police services under contract to 11 Provinces and terri ...

during the stroke By November, the strike was ongoing, with striking workers blocking non-striking workers on November 5. Courts passed an injunction in the second week of November against the strike. The mine and produced 7.7 mega tons of ore which were dumped over an area covering 47 hectares including next to Camp Lake. Water from the contaminated Camp Lake has since leached into Kississing Lake. Weathering of the mine's

tailings In mining, tailings or tails are the materials left over after the process of separating the valuable fraction from the uneconomic fraction (gangue) of an ore. Tailings are different from overburden, which is the waste rock or other material ...

has released sulphate, metals and acid into surface and ground water for over 50 years since the mine has closed. In 2009, The ''

Winnipeg Free Press The ''Free Press'' (or FP; founded as the ''Manitoba Free Press''; previously known as the ''Winnipeg Free Press'') is a daily (excluding Sunday) broadsheet newspaper in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It provides coverage of local, provincial, natio ...

'' described the pollution around the mine as "one of the worst cases of acidic mine drainage in the world". The

Government of Manitoba The powers and structure of the provincial Government of Manitoba () are set out in the Constitution Act, 1867. In modern Canadian use, the term "government" refers broadly to the cabinet of the day (formally the Executive Council of Manitoba, ...

started remediation of the pollution from the mine in 2009. In 2017, unhappy with the progress of the remediation, members of the local community briefly blockaded the local highway, preventing access.

References

{{Portal bar, Canada, History, Business, Geology, Environment Mines in Manitoba Former mines in Canada 1931 establishments in Canada 1951 disestablishments in Canada Zinc mines in Canada Copper mines in Canada Buildings and structures in Northern Region, Manitoba

History

See also

References