Areva Resources Canada has submitted the final environmental impact statement for its Kiggavik Project to the Nunavut Impact Review Board, outlining an ambitious uranium mine project, potentially the first of its kind in Nunavut.

Located 80 kilometers (50 miles) west of Baker Lake, Nunavut, Kiggavik is a proposed uranium mining and milling operation owned by Areva (64.8 percent), JCU (Canada) Exploration Co. Ltd. (33.5 percent) and Daewoo Corp. (1.7 percent), and is operated by Paris-based Areva, one of the world's leading uranium mining and nuclear energy companies.

Uranium in the Kiggavik area was identified during the 1970s and 1980s.

In 1993 Areva's Canadian subsidiary, Areva Resources Canada Inc. became the operator of the Kiggavik project.

As the uranium market improved during the first half of 2005, Areva re-established community and territory contacts in Baker Lake and Nunavut. Field activities, engineering studies and environmental assessment studies resumed in 2007. The company used these studies to develop the project plans in the final EIS.

The Kiggavik project includes two sites, Kiggavik and Sissons, comprising 37 mineral leases covering 18,470 hectares (45,639 acres).

Resources at Kiggavik are currently estimated to total about 51,000 metric tons uranium (133 million pounds U3O8) at an average grade of 0.46 percent uranium.

Areva Canada envisions about 14 years of operation at the Kiggavik project and anticipates three to four years of construction before startup and five years for decommissioning activities. However, it is expected that additional resources will be found, and the project could operate for up to 25 years.

In summarizing its vision for the project, Areva said the date of project construction will be influenced by favorable market conditions, completion of detailed engineering, and successful completion of licensing and other project approvals.

While uranium market conditions do not currently favor a construction decision, Areva said completing the environmental assessment will allow the project to move forward with the next steps when the market improves as expected.

"We thank the people of Baker Lake and the Kivalliq Region for openly sharing their concerns and aspirations related to the potential development of the Kiggavik Project, in addition to the local knowledge they provided our team in the course of the studies performed for the final environmental impact statement," said Areva Resources Canada President and CEO Vincent Martin in a statement.

The work, presented Oct. 2 to the Nunavut Impact Review Board, reflects more than six years of engineering, environmental and public engagement studies. AREVA has sought community input and Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, or traditional knowledge, to refine the project design and environmental assessment.

Filling document binders, the final EIS for the Kiggavik project includes detailed studies demonstrating that modern uranium development is safe for workers, the public and the environment.

The project includes development of three open pits (East Zone, Center Zone, and Main Zone) at the Kiggavik site and both an open pit (Andrew Lake) and an underground operation (End Grid) at the Sissons site. The ore will be mined using excavating equipment and then hauled, using trucks, to a designated ore stockpile.

Mine rock from the mines containing background to low levels of uranium will be segregated into three types: Type 1 mine rock, which is considered suitable for use as construction material; Type 2 mine rock, which can be for permanent storage on surface; and Type 3 mine rock, which will require temporary storage on surface and back-filling into mined-out open pits during decommissioning.

Ore stored on stockpiles will be directed to the mill at the Kiggavik site to produce up to 4,000 metric tons annually of uranium as ore concentrate, also called "yellowcake."

Tailings resulting from the extraction of uranium from the ore will be treated in the mill and deposited sequentially in the three Kiggavik mined-out open pits (East Zone, Centre Zone, Main Zone) converted for use as tailings management facilities. The tailings will be stored underneath a layer of water during the operational period to prevent freezing.

Freshwater will be drawn from nearby lakes for potable and industrial uses. A small purpose-built-pit also will be excavated on the Kiggavik site for use as a water management facility to maximize site drainage containment, storage and recycling. Water treatment plants will be operated at both the Kiggavik and Sissons sites to meet treated effluent discharge requirements for protection of the environment. The treated effluent will be discharged to Judge Sissons Lake.

Power will be generated using on-site diesel powerhouses at the Kiggavik and Sissons sites.

During the open-water season, re-agents, fuel and operating supplies will be transported to Hudson Bay using either tankers and containerships or possibly rail to Churchill, Manitoba. The materials will then be transferred to barges and transported to the Baker Lake dock facility for off-loading and storage or transportation to the Kiggavik site by truck on the Baker Lake - Kiggavik access road.

If the winter road proves unable to adequately support the project, an all-season access road, crossing the Thelon River with a cable ferry, may be constructed during the operations phase of the project.

A 2,000-meter airstrip also will serve the project for transporting employees and supplies to site and containerized drums of uranium concentrate to southern Canada.

The operation would be fly-in/fly-out on a seven- to 14-day schedule with onsite employees housed in a permanent accommodations complex.

The Kiggavik project is expected to employ up to 750 people during construction and 400 to 600 people during operation.

Taxes and royalties to be paid on the Kiggavik project will total about C$1 billion, payable to Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., and the Nunavut and federal governments.

Understanding caribou was a primary concern of residents in the Kivalliq region of Nunavut where the Kiggavik project is located. As a result, Areva said it drew on local Inuit traditional knowledge and engagement information to modify its baseline studies. The also company collaborated with other interested stakeholders to better understand caribou at the herd and regional levels, and vowed to continue working collaboratively on caribou issues during the environmental assessment and when the project proceeds.

In response to public concerns about how extreme winds and permafrost conditions will affect the project, Areva said its project design incorporated the results of detailed assessments on air quality and permafrost conditions and will capitalize on the modern Saskatchewan uranium mining experience, while remaining Nunavut-specific.

The company also said public concern over uranium development led to increased engagement efforts to inform communities of the industry and radiation protection. Detailed studies on health, using comparisons to international standards, demonstrates that modern uranium development does not compromise worker or public safety, Areva said.

Heeding community preferences, Areva removed an earlier contemplated access road alternative (south all-season access road) from consideration in project development moving forward.

The EIS concluded that the project will have effects, but none will be significantly adverse to the project, the surrounding ecosystem nor the workers and the general public.

The next steps in the Kiggavik environmental assessment include a technical review of the final EIS and public hearings to be held in Baker Lake.

The Review Board has scheduled three weeks of technical presentations and community roundtable discussions related to the Kiggavik project. From March 2 to March 20, the regulatory panel plans to host a series of meetings in Baker Lake to obtain public input on the proposed uranium mine.