On August 30, 2022, the Tłı̨chǫ Government completed their annual water sampling field program for the Kwetıı̨ɂ̨aà (Rayrock Mine) remediation project. This work was Tłı̨chǫ-led, and is a part of the federally funded clean-up of the former uranium mine.

Kwetı̨ı̨ɂaà remains an important area to the Tłı̨chǫ people as a place where Tłı̨chǫ families used to live, camp, travel through, and harvest. The priority of the Kwetı̨ı̨ɂaà (Rayrock) remediation project is to make the area safe again for Tłı̨chǫ use.

The Tłı̨chǫ Government and the Kwetı̨ı̨ɂaà Elders Committee are working towards the clean-up of Kwetı̨ı̨ɂaà (Rayrock Mine) in conjunction with Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada. The large-scale clean-up is anticipated to begin in 2023 and is expected to take 3 years to complete the majority of the remediation work. The clean-up work will be followed by a long-term monitoring program.

The Tłı̨chǫ-led water sampling program focuses on the area known as the Kwetı̨ı̨ɂaà Avoidance Zone, which is an area surrounding the mine where elders avoid hunting, harvesting, and drinking surface water. The Avoidance Zone was mapped by members of the Kwetı̨ı̨ɂaà Elders Committee in March 2017. The water sampling program was initiated in 2018 under the direction of the Kwetı̨ı̨ɂaà Elders Committee, and 2022 marks the fifth year that sampling has been completed.

The sampling program documents the water quality on-site, downstream, upstream and surrounding the former mine. This is to clearly understand the extent of contamination and to assure the Tłı̨chǫ that the Marian River and the surrounding environment is safe for use.

Read the full report:  Kwetıı̨ɂ̨aà TG Water Sampling_Media Post_2022-11-25.pdf