Former B.C. mining CEO fined $30K for environmental violations
Gold nuggets and bars are shown in this undated file photo. (AP / Newmont Mining)
The former chief executive of a defunct British Columbia mining company has been ordered to pay $30,000 in fines and victim surcharges after he was found guilty of 13 counts of environmental violations related to prohibited waste discharges in northwestern B.C.
Benjamin Mossman, 46, was found guilty of nine counts of breaching a permit by discharging prohibited amounts of zinc or total suspended solids, and four counts of breaching federal mining effluent limits, in his capacity as president and CEO of Banks Island Gold Ltd.
The company's Yellow Giant gold and silver mine closed in 2015, after enforcement officers from Environment and Climate Change Canada said waste from the operation had been found in the surrounding woods and wetlands on Banks Island, south of Prince Rupert.
Provincial court judge David Patterson found Mossman was "a key operating mind running the daily operation and possessing the power to implement safety systems at the Yellow Giant mine site," adding the former CEO "participated in or acquiesced to the offences by failing to ensure appropriate safety measures were in place."
The judge also wrote in his sentencing decision that the actions of the company "jeopardized the rich resources and economy of the Gitxaala Nation," which opposed the mine's development, "as well as the spiritual beliefs of its people."
In deciding the financial penalty to levy against Mossman, the judge cited mitigating factors, including Mossman's role as the sole financial supporter of his wife and two children.
The former executive, who now lives in California, is currently unemployed after he was recently laid off from his role as CEO of a U.S. mining firm, though he remains on the company's board of directors, his lawyer told the court.
Banks Island in northwestern B.C. is highlighted in red. (Google Maps)
The judge also noted that Crown prosecutors were unable to prove that any environmental harm had actually occurred as a result of the excessive discharges. However, the judge concluded that "ignoring the basic conditions of a mining permit cannot be allowed."
Mossman was ordered to pay a total of $27,170 in fines and $2,826 in victim surcharges by Sept. 26, 2028.
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