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Author Topic: CHEHALIS RIVER GRAVEL PIT COMMING SOON ON THE UPPER RIVER-DON'T LET THIS HAPPEN!  (Read 23469 times)

Nostro

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Thanks for the heads up, ATS. Once the steamroller gets going, it is very hard to stop it. So, the earlier we raise public concern, the better chances are that some good will come of it.
You may want to also put BC Wildlife Federation on your mailing list:
http://www.bcwf.bc.ca/about/contact.html

Please keep us updated on new info.
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Addicted To Steel

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Thank you Nostro! The BCWF is at the top of the list for sure.  I have worked with them in the past, so hopefully that will help too.

Unfortunately, I was on the rivers all day today so I was not around to get phone calls, but I did receive a couple of messages. I am working from home tomorrow so I will call them back to see what is up.

ATS.

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Sandy

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Mineral rights do not give you entiltlement to remove gravel , mineral rights give you title to whats in the rock
Placer title allows you to process alluviam to extract minerals usually your not allowed to remove gravels from the claim area
.removing aluviam for use elsewhere is gravel mining and is a differant process again , technicaly 3 or more differant people/companies may own title to the same area .I'm a bit rusty with some of this title stuff but I don't think that things have changed al that much ,Goverment agents office MR should also be able to help you out .
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finding your limits is fun, it can also be VERY painful.

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Addicted To Steel

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OK guys, here's the info I gathered today after a lengthy conversation with Al Jonson from the DFO;

Approx. two weeks ago the DFO received a referral from the Ministry of Energy and Mines regarding an Exploration Permit for the Chehalis River area between Boulder Creek and Statlu creek. The Exploration Permit was granted and it encompasses an area of approx 900 hectares of land. This permit allows them to do test pits and seismic tests for now but their ultimate objective is to get an Extraction Permit. The proponent is claiming there will be a 200 meter buffer zone in between the gravel pits and the river if allowed to extract.


The publicly traded company which applied for this permit is called Mosquito Consolidated Gold Mines Limited. Traded under the initials MSQ on the TSX-V You can find them on line at http://www.infomine.com/index/companies/MOSQUITO_CONSOLIDATED_GOLD_MINES_LIMITED.html They are a Canadian company.


The DFO was contacted in order to get an idea of the plausibility of the proposals, and to give input regarding environmental concerns. The DFO also in turn contacted the Provincial Dept. of Fisheries for their input.


The companies proposal shows a series of pits, not just one, but several in the area listed above.

Another proposal of the proponent was to have a 15 km conveyor belt going from the main pit down to the Harrison River bridge used for transporting the gravel onto barges in order to save on trucking costs.

Al informed me that the company released a news release to their shareholders about this application, and that they wrote that the DFO was in favor of the application.
Al told me that the part of the news release about the DFO being in favor of it is untrue, and not supported by any of their communication.

Apparently they are not only interested in gravel extraction, but also in the gold in the area. There isn't much, but they have done sampling already and they figure on .5 of a gram per ton. Which equals approx $13/ton on top of the gravel value.

The gravel deposits are said to be very deep which will conflict with heavy concentrations of ground water. A main concern is that the disruption of the gravel deposits would have a negative impact on the ground water which is a contributor to the tributary creeks which feed the main stem of the Chehalis river with water during low water conditions.

( I have spent a large amount of time in the Chehalis canyon during the hot Summer months gathering broodstock for the hatchery. There were a couple of times the water was so low, and so warm that it was dangerous to catch steelhead because of the stress it would cause the fish. The fishes health is in jeopardy with water in this low,warm condition. If there was a disruption to this ground water supply (deep cold springs), it is my belief that the water in the main stem would be affected drastically. I am no expert, but Al supported this belief.  Hopefully some experts will come to bat for those opposed to this operation with some helpfull ammunition.)

Al said that it is now that we should be gathering information and support to fight this application, because this company is serious about proceeding.

I will be relaying the information with several groups over the next two days, but once again-PLEASE HELP!!! This is the upper Pitt all over again guys.

I will continue to post info as I gather it, and news on any support I get from the groups I contact.

ATS.






« Last Edit: January 12, 2006, 04:19:08 PM by Addicted To Steel »
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Sterling C

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Thanks for the update. I for one will support the fight against this in whatever way I can.
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Addicted To Steel

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Hi Biffchan, that is great to hear!! I know you are an avid fishermen of the Chehalis. It is easy to get very attached to such a special river.

I sent you a PM a few minutes ago.

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Sandy

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well done Ats,
might be a good idea to post this on the other sites,they will get the ball rolling quite quickly ,probably by applying to do a bulk sample under their exploration permits. ( speeds up the process)   

try this link,
imho , I think they could be serious about this, not always is the case with junior mining companies.
IMHO we should do our home work, before we make statements that are not factual eventhough we think the are true.
try this. http://www.mosquitogold.com/new_images/gravel.pdf 
« Last Edit: January 12, 2006, 06:26:01 PM by Sandy »
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finding your limits is fun, it can also be VERY painful.

If you care about Canada's future, get involved by holding your MLA's & MP's accountable!! don't just be sheep!!

Rodney

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Thanks again ATS for the in depth research. I have forwarded this thread to those on the Upper Fraser SFAC as well as some of the interest groups that use the Chehalis River freqently. Many will be/have been reading this and will take this up to the upcoming meetings. Some have emailed me back and they want to express their thanks to you for doing the initial legwork. :)

Addicted To Steel

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Thank you Sandy. That's the letter all right. I'll include that link for sure in my communication with others.

I think this company is quite serious about this venture unfortunately. :( (But what do I know ;) )
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Addicted To Steel

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Thank you Rodney! I'm glad to hear others are concerned, as we all should be. It feels good to know there are good people out there!! Let's hope this gets stomped out quickly, although my gut tells me it will be long and tough.

Is there anyone on this forum from the Sportsfishing Defense Alliance?

I was in contact again with the FWFS this morning. I passed on all the info I had, and I believe there will be some help comming from there. I also left a message with the BCWF and tomorrow I will do some more phone calling for support from others.

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Sandy

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anyone got a map showing the chehalis pools etc.? also might want to find a map showing the proposed area
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finding your limits is fun, it can also be VERY painful.

If you care about Canada's future, get involved by holding your MLA's & MP's accountable!! don't just be sheep!!

chris gadsden

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This was brought up at the Fraser Valley Salmon Society meetring tonight and our SFAC rep's will be doing some work I believe on this.

I will send some info to The Chilliwack Progress and ask them to send to their sister paper in Agassiz.

Addicted To Steel

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Thank you Chris, that is great news!! The ball is rolling ;D I knew there would be concerned souls on this forum. It is obvious by the professional style this forum has and the way people treat each other here that makes this a great place to hang out. :) Good job by the mods as well. ;D

Sandy, I think I may be able to get a map of that area. I had one in the early 90's. One of the tackle stores was distributing it, maybe I can dig one up still.

I also forgot to give the name of the resource consulting firm which this company is using; it is J.O. Thomas and Associates Ltd.

ATS
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chris gadsden

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Have forwarded this thread just now to Bill Otway, SDA President. Also to two Chilliwack Progress reporters. If anyone has contacts with the Vancouver Papers that would be worth exploring also.

To really fight this, a lobby group should be formed as you always have more clout this way with a president and an executive.

I am not volunteering to do this as I have 11 committes at the present but have found this to be be very effective as I have started 4 groups over the years, a lot of work but you can accomplish a lot.

Worth considering before it is too late.

Nicole

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Hey Guys,

Can I get CBC TV & Radio interviews for you guys? I think Mark Forsythe would be so incredibly keen to take this story, as he's a dedicated flyfisher.

Also, I can drop some paperwork at the TV Newsroom, they're always looking for leads...

Could I get a contact list of credible people to forward to our staff? I could use 3 good names with phone numbers to get the ball rolling... You can post them here or email them to me at: nicole@cbcradio3.com.

Thanks,
Nicole Goodman
« Last Edit: January 12, 2006, 11:14:59 PM by Nicole »
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