Ottawa Pulls Out of Mine Clean-up Negotiations

Ottawa Pulls Out of Mine Clean-up Negotiations

Friday, January 02, 2004 at 14:18

The provincial government has admitted that the federal government dropped out of talks to clean up abandoned uranium mines in the North months ago.

An official with Northern Affairs has confirmed that Ottawa stopped negotiating with the province over who should pay for the clean-up 3 months ago.

The provincial government has been trying to get the feds to agree to a cost-sharing agreement for the estimated 25-million-dollar project.

Over 40 mine sites in northern Saskatchewan that date back to the 1960s have yet to be decommissioned, despite a government study that says some of the sites pose a significant hazard to local residents and the environment.

The lobby group New North is demanding answers as to why the province didn’t announce Ottawa’s withdrawal from negotiations until now.