Environment minister demands more info about impacts of proposed gold mine

Nova Scotia's environment minister has told the company behind a proposed gold mine on the Eastern Shore she needs more information to make a decision on whether to approve or reject the project.

Toronto-based Anaconda Mining Inc. wants to developa 125-hectare surface and underground mine just outside Goldboro, N.S., about 250 kilometres east of Halifax.

Environment Minister Margaret Miller told the company in a letterthat itsenvironmental assessment documents "provided insufficient information to allow an assessment of potential impacts of the project."

Once the Environment Department outlines the requirements of the report, Anaconda will have one year to submit it.

The company plansto begin construction in 2020 and wind up production in 2029.

The operation would begin as an open-pit mine and then become an underground mine by its third year.

The company's environmental assessment documents, which total hundreds of pages, concluded the projectwould have "no significant negative impact."

"Anaconda has a solid reputation for environmental stewardship at our current operations in Newfoundland and we will extend the same commitment in Nova Scotia," the document notes.

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