Agnico Eagle will be launching a fresh round of public consultations for its proposed pipelines to carry saline water from the mine to the ocean on Aug. 20.
photo courtesy of Agnico Eagle
In July the Nunavut Impact Review Board put the company's plans on hold in a written statement due to a lack of information and public consultation.
Agnico Eagle's current application requests permission to install two 16-inch, 34-kilometre-long pipes to Melvin Bay. It estimates the pipelines would discharge between 6,000 cubic metres and 12,000 cubic metres per day – the equivalent of 150 to 300 trucks per day — between May and October.
The fresh round of public consultations will take place in Rankin Inlet's community hall over the course of three sessions on Aug. 20.
The time slots are from 10 a.m. to noon, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., and 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Annual Calm Air tournament returning to Rankin
Rankin Inlet
The annual Calm Air softball tournament will be returning to Rankin Inlet at the end of the month. The organizers are hoping to get teams from around the Kivalliq region to participate.
The tournament will run from Aug. 26-30. Each team must field a roster of six men and four women with a maximum of 14 players per roster. Players must be at least 16 years old. The registration fee is $500 per team.
The tournament has traditionally been a qualifier to play at the Canadian Softball National Championships. However the 2020 tournament has been cancelled due to Covid-19.
The deadline to register is Aug. 21.
Society hosted food bank in Baker Lake
Baker Lake
The Abluqta Society hosted a food bank on Aug. 12. Food was handed out to the majority of those in need at the society's building. Baker Lake volunteer firefighters helped out by hand-delivering food to the elders in the community. Funding for the drive was provided by Agnico Eagle, which was also responsible for volunteers.
Anyone willing to help volunteer in future food bank events should contact the society.
“A reminder that volunteers are the life blood of our non-profit society and without their awesome work, our food bank would not be possible,” the society said in a statement.
On-the-land programs being held
Rankin Inlet
The Ilitaqsiniq Nunavut Literacy Council will be hosting two unique on-the-land programs at the end of the month.
The first will be a berry-picking program taking place Aug. 24-28. In the course students will learn how to bake with berries, preserve berries and make jam.
The second course, which will run from Aug. 31 to Sept. 4, will focus on whale hunting. This module will teach students basic boat safety, how to harvest whales and how to prepare and preserve whale meat.
Both programs are for youth aged 13 to 19. They will feature three days of after-school activities and two days on the land.
The registration deadline is Aug. 20.