Land & Water Programs

Baffinland undertakes a combination of programs and scientific studies annually to monitor and assess changes in terrestrial, freshwater and marine environments.

Every year, a Terrestrial Monitoring Program is implemented to study various areas, such as vegetation, dust fall, birds and mammals. For instance, in winter months, snow track surveys are implemented after fresh snowfall to detect animal tracks in proximity of the Tote Road.

The Freshwater Monitoring Program runs throughout the year. Water, sediment, organisms, and fish samples are collected from lakes and streams near the Mary River Mine site to determine if the quality or condition of them has changed from their prior state before mining-related activities began in 2015.

Our marine monitoring programs and studies are supported by numerous Inuit researchers and marine wildlife observers from various communities including Arctic Bay, Pond Inlet and Igloolik. The results of the 2020 programs will be made available to the public by mid-2021. Results from previous years can be found online on the Baffinland Download Library at www.baffinland.com/document-portal/.

Pond Inlet-based Shipping Monitors

Following the success of the 2019 program, in 2020 Baffinland trained and hired nine full-time and part-time shipping monitors based in Pond Inlet to provide a direct liaison between the community of Pond Inlet, the Mittimatalik Hunters and Trappers Organization and Baffinland during the 2020 shipping season. Shipping monitors tracked and communicated on a daily basis the incoming and outgoing Baffinland-related vessel activities transiting to and from Milne Port using various methods including marine VHF radio, local radio and through social media. They were also available to answer questions and keep track of any concerns received by the community and provide responses in a timely manner. Shipping monitors worked in shifts to maximize daily coverage of up to 24 hours a day.

New to 2020 in response to community feedback was the creation of a dedicated “Baffinland Shipping” Facebook page to further enhance regular communications over the shipping season, attracting over 660 followers. Key information was posted including maps showing the Northern Shipping Route extending from Baffin Bay to Milne Port, contact information of shipping monitors including direct cell phone line and email, and a link to live vessel tracking available on the Baffinland website. For more information on our Shipping programs, visit www.baffinland.com/operation/shipping-and-monitoring/.

Printed copies of our environmental reports are available from the Mittimatalik Hunters and Trappers Organization office.

Marine Monitoring Programs

New purpose-built observation platform installed at the top of Bruce Head in Milne Inlet.

Baffinland was successful in completing all of its marine monitoring programs during the 2020 field season, with the exception of one, the ship-based observation (SBO) monitoring program, due to stricter vessel boarding restrictions related to COVID-19. As an alternative to the latter program, Baffinland initiated a pilot marine mammal observation program during the 2020 shipping season in collaboration with the Marine Mammal Observation Network/Réseau d’Observation de Mammifères Marins.

Between mid-July and mid-September 2020, Baffinland also completed marine mammal aerial surveys in Eclipse Sound and Admiralty Inlet, the Marine Environmental Effects Monitoring Program, Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Monitoring Program and ore dock and freight dock marine fisheries habitat offset monitoring programs, in addition to the Bruce Head Shore-based Monitoring program, which included an underwater noise monitoring component.

A new purpose-built observation platform was installed at Bruce Head overlooking the nominal shipping route in southern Milne Inlet to support marine mammal visual survey efforts. Over the approximately four-week-long Bruce Head Shore-based program, which aims to study potential effects of Baffinland- related shipping activities on marine mammals, various species of whales (narwhal, bowhead, killer whale and beluga) and seals (ringed, harp and bearded) were recorded.

As part of this program, numerous video footages of whales in the presence and absence of vessels transiting through the area were recorded through the use of drones deployed from the top of Bruce Head. In the coming months, Baffinland’s technical specialists will be analyzing and reporting on all of the Marine mammal observer looking out data collected throughout the 2020 field season.

Marine mammal observer looking out data collected throughout the 2020 field season.