Coal mining contaminants in the Canadian Rockies
An opportunity to attend a lecture by Dr. Colin Cooke, a Senior Aquatic Scientist with the Alberta Government and Adjunct Professor at the University of Alberta.
This will be an interesting session. Hope you can attend. This presentation will be recorded to be available to those who can’t make it.
This Wednesday, Dr Colin Cooke, a Senior Aquatic Scientist with the Alberta Government and Adjunct Professor at the University of Alberta, will be presenting “Coal mining contaminants in the Canadian Rockies” as a part of the U of A’s Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Graduate Student Society (ATLAS) weekly lecture series. The abstract and a link to the webinar can be found below.
When: Wednesday, December 3, 12:00 – 1:00 PM, Edmonton
Link: https://ualberta-ca.zoom.us/j/97879365334?pwd=oLdRQcRkaRYsi3iNt6KylnUqxBNdPb.1
Meeting ID: 978 7936 5334
Password: ATLAS2025Abstract
The potential for expanded coal mining in the Canadian Rockies has garnered considerable attention in recent years. In the Elk River valley of southeast British Columbia, four large mountaintop coal mines export ~20 million tons annually. The environmental impact of these mines extends beyond BC’s (and Canada’s) border and are the subject of an open IJC (International Joint Commission) investigation. On the Alberta side of the Rockies, new applications to expand existing mines, and to restart mining at legacy sites, have generated considerable debate, public interest, and new research. Dr. Cooke will summarize some of our recent publications examining the impacts of both active and legacy mountaintop removal coal mining in the Canadian Rockies. His results have revealed new insight into how organic and inorganic contaminants are being transported to ecosystems downstream and downwind. The spread of these contaminants, and the potential for more and larger mines, carries important consequences for people and animals living within (and far away from) coal mining communities.