Approval for Gypsum Mine Complete

Georgia Pacific Canada Inc. has received the approvals necessary to begin operation of a gypsum mine in Melford, Inverness Co.

In announcing the issuing of the industrial approval, acting Environment Minister Michael Baker said all the conditions of the release for the project have been satisfied.

The conditions placed on the application approval will ensure all environmental concerns raised during the review are addressed. Public input was considered at every stage of the process.

The company will add 20 new jobs and maintain another 90 positions, pumping $10 million a year into the provincial and local economies.

The proposed mine, including all facilities, will occupy 170 hectares. Gypsum will be trucked to an on-site crushing and screening plant. It will then be loaded onto highway trucks for transport to Point Tupper. The mine is expected to have a 20-year life.

Georgia Pacific has been mining gypsum in Cape Breton since 1962.

Georgia Pacific will ensure protection of an area of old growth forest adjacent to the Bornish Hills Nature Reserve, additional karst habitat on its Sugar Camp property and four significant wetland properties.

As well, the company will fund more than $2 million of road improvements. A new intersection near the mine site and a climbing lane for slower traffic on Highway 105 will be built. Georgia Pacific will also establish a $400,000 trust fund for future transportation projects.

The Department of Transportation and Public Works has indicated the road has adequate capacity to support increased truck traffic.