Copperwood Resources Fined for Soil Erosion, Wetland Damage

Copperwood Resources, a subsidiary of Highland Copper of Quebec, has reached a settlement with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) regarding soil erosion that occurred in the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park in the spring of 2017 after the mining company continued to drill without wetland and soil erosion control permits.

The erosion occurred during exploratory drilling, which was preliminary work for a bigger project to come- underground mining in a property just outside the park owned by Highland Copper. The mining during spring snowmelt damaged wetlands and resulted in a discharge of muddied water. In response, the MDEQ fined the company $25,000 and ordered them to restore the area. The mining company has been taking steps to fix the erosion and vows they’ve learned their lesson.

“Our team has learned a great deal from this incident and future work will continue to be done under strict compliance with current environmental legislation and best practices,” said Carlos Bertoni, vice-president of exploration at Highland Copper, in a statement as reported by MLive.