In late June, the heap leach pad at the Eagle gold mine in central Yukon failed. Heap leaching is a method for extracting minerals from ore, and its failure in this case caused a landslide. Cyanide and other contaminants spilled into the valley and entered waterways. Mining halted, hundreds of workers were laid off, and a flurry of water testing began, conducted by the federal and territorial governments and the mine’s operator, Victoria Gold.
The First Nation of Na-Cho Nyäk Dun demanded a stop to all mining on its traditional territory. Over the ensuing weeks, while the Yukon government gave regular media briefings on environmental monitoring and containment efforts, the company kept quiet, speaking publicly for the first time only one month after the disaster.
