Inside
◆ Mekenna Colthorp P. 3 ◆ Sculpting P. 5
◆ Nak’albun Olympics P. 6, 7, 8 ◆ Ballet P. 12
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WEDNESDAY, March 4, 2015
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VOL. 38 NO. 01 $1.30 inc. GST
Spring ahead
Nak’albun Winter Olympics
Daylight savings begins on Sunday, March 8. Don’t forget to turn your clocks ahead one hour.
New Gold’s Black Water update “We’re still here and still moving forward,” says Claudette Gouger, Community Manager REBECCA WATSON Omineca Express
LINEUP: Nicholas Prince, Latoya Prince, Lacey Haskell, Loyie Prince, Julissa Joseph, Luke Bird, Darci Martin, and Tessa Sam. More photos pages 6, 7 and 8.
Vanderhoof — The Nechako Lakes region can expect to hear more from New Gold (NG) on their proposed Blackwater (BW) project as it moves forward with exploration this May. The gold mine’s original construction start date was set for 2015, but has since been moved to a tentative start for 2017. “We’re still very active in the area through exploration and moving forward with our permitting. We’re just at the part people don’t always see what we’re doing but we’re here,” said Claudette Gouger, community manager. The BW mine site, located 110 km south east of Vanderhoof, sits within New Gold’s 1,100 km squared mineral tenure. Its gold deposit was discovered in the 70’s and purchased by New Gold in 2011. During 2012, New Gold mapped out the mineral deposit and started sample drilling. Their 2015 exploration budget is $17 million for all projects, Blackwater being the second largest portion at approximately 25 per cent. Once developed, the BW project will produce more gold than all other New Gold operations combined. The project could enter the public comment stage as early as April 2015 as they continue to work on permitting, environmental assessment and consultations with the community and First Nations. “The opportunity is coming very soon for people to come to our open houses, provide comments and ask questions. People of Vanderhoof have been incredibly supportive and we’re going to be looking for continued support as we move to the public comment period,” Gouger said. Surface exploration is planned for May and June to help narrow down areas to drill; which could be up to 4,000 meters in various locations. Last year’s exploration discovered a number of promising areas with traces of different minerals close to the BW site that will also be explored further this summer. “Blackwater is large but it’s not the main deposit. Sometimes finding other minerals such as copper
Photo by Rebecca Watson
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