Historic Mine Remediation

About the Project

On behalf of the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources, Build Nova Scotia (BNS) is managing the evaluation and remediation of historic mine sites on Crown lands including Montague Mines in Halifax Regional Municipality, and the Goldenville mine in Guysborough County.

Preliminary findings show that the Montague Mines and Goldenville sites do not pose an immediate risk to the public; however, parts of them are considered contaminated and need to be managed. Initial conceptual closure plans were completed in the summer of 2019, and continued sampling and assessment has taken place. Phase 1 and 2 Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs) were completed in 2022 and detailed remedial design work for the Montague site is ongoing. Indigenous community consultations are now being initiated to refine the final design.

The other identified sites have gone through initial research and field visits by BNS environmental professionals, which was largely completed between 2019 and 2023. An additional 15 former mine sites are currently undergoing detailed Phase 1 and 2 ESAs using outside environmental consultants. As studies are finalized, they will be released and posted to the BNS Historic Mine Remediation Project website.