British Columbia coal miner fined for repeatedly violating environmental protection regulations

Conuma Resources, a metallurgical coal miner with operations in northeastern British Columbia, has been fined for over 400 environmental protection violations, CBC News reported.

The BC Ministry of Environment and Climate Change fined the company for violations of the Canadian province’s environmental protection rules, including the failure to monitor mine waste into fish-bearing water and failure to limit particulate being put into the air, according to the CBC.

The Ministry reported the violations occurred at Conuma’s Brule mine site between 2020 and 2023. The company had already received several notices and warnings for previous violations, the Ministry said. The mine has been in operations since 2016.

A fine totalling C$41,100 was issued to Conuma on June 6, 2024, for its failure to comply with the province’s environmental management act. The company was also ordered to follow the Brule mine water quality monitoring program.

Conuma has three operating mines in the province — Brule, Wolverine and Willow Creek. It also owns the Quintette coal mine, which it acquired in 2022 from Teck Resources for $120 million. Work is currently underway to bring Quintette back into operations, according to the company’s website.