EASTERN SHORE – Ottawa has decided that St Barbara Ltd.’s proposed 15-Mile Processing Hub – including a mine site at Cochrane Hill in St. Mary’s – must undergo a federal impact assessment, contrary to the Australian gold miner’s expectations just weeks after it formally made Nova Scotia the focus of its worldwide development strategy.
The Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC) announced Friday, Oct. 30, that the project would advance to the next stage of the federal assessment planning process, following a preliminary review of the company’s submissions and concerns raised by Indigenous groups, government authorities and the public.
The decision means St Barbara must now prepare for a federal impact assessment alongside the provincial review it had expected to carry the project through permitting.
The announcement follows St Barbara’s Sept. 28 declaration in an investor presentation prepared for Mining Forum Americas in Colorado that it would become a “Nova Scotia focused developer,” following an agreement to sell its remaining interest in the New Simberi Gold Project in Papua New Guinea.
That transaction, involving its 40 per cent stake in the project, was valued at about $449 million in cash plus royalties. St Barbara said the sale would allow it to concentrate on its Nova Scotia gold properties, including the restart of its Touquoy operation at Moose River and development of the 15-Mile project.
At the time, the company anticipated a federal decision under section 16 of the Impact Assessment Act that would allow 15-Mile to proceed without a separate federal examination running alongside the provincial process.
Company challenges decision
In a statement Monday, Nov. 2, St Barbara managing director and CEO Andrew Strelein called the agency’s determination “very disappointing for both St Barbara and the Province of Nova Scotia.”
He argued that the decision imposed unnecessary duplication and appeared to contradict Ottawa’s stated commitment to a “One Project, One Review” approach to major developments.
The company also maintained that the decision failed to reflect the federal-provincial co-operation agreement signed Mar. 27, which was intended to reduce overlapping assessment requirements.
St Barbara said it had received assurances from all levels of government that the approach would avoid duplicate reviews. It also claimed that agency officials had advised the company they would proceed with minimal discussions with Nova Scotia.
For its part, in its decision on Friday, IAAC said it would engage with the province on reducing duplication while maintaining federal legislative and consultation obligations, including consideration of the March agreement.
Environmental concerns
In its decision, IAAC said the proposed development may cause adverse effects within federal jurisdiction, including potential harm to fish and fish habitat, migratory birds, and Indigenous land and resource use.
The agency also identified possible effects on Indigenous physical and cultural heritage, health, social and economic conditions, and rights.
Its accompanying Summary of Issues identifies concerns about water quality in the St. Mary’s and East/West River (Sheet Harbour) watersheds, including sedimentation, runoff, changes to groundwater flows and possible releases of arsenic, mercury, cyanide and other contaminants.
The document also raises questions about mine waste management, tailings containment, Atlantic salmon habitat, migratory birds and the cumulative effects of mining and other industrial activities in the region.
For Mi’kmaq communities, the issues include traditional hunting, fishing and harvesting activities, cultural heritage, archaeological resources, health and the exercise of constitutionally protected rights.
The agency’s decision identifies potential effects requiring further examination, not findings that those effects have occurred.
Local reaction
For Scott Beaver, president of the St. Mary’s River Association, the decision answers a longstanding demand for greater federal scrutiny of mining proposals affecting the river and surrounding communities.
“I am overjoyed with IAAC’s decision to move forward with the next phase of the federal environmental assessment process,” he told The Journal in an email, following the announcement.
“There was a great deal of anxiety within the community while waiting for this decision. Community members were concerned about the possibility of this project moving forward with only a provincial environmental assessment.”
The association has opposed St Barbara’s earlier mining proposals near the St. Mary’s River, particularly the former Cochrane Hill project, and has raised concerns about the possible effects of the consolidated 15-Mile development.
Beaver said the environmental issues warrant a rigorous examination, although he questioned whether mining should proceed in the watershed at all. He pointed to the St. Mary’s River’s candidacy for national recognition as an Ecologically Significant Area, arguing that the designation presents economic opportunities that could be undermined by industrial development. “Projects like this only distract from the good work already happening here,” he said.
A regional mining plan
The 15-Mile Processing Hub represents the latest version of mining plans that St Barbara has pursued for years in northeastern Nova Scotia.
Originally, the company advanced three separate projects: Fifteen Mile Stream, Beaver Dam and Cochrane Hill, the latter near the St. Mary’s River, not far from Sherbrooke in the Municipality of the District of St. Mary’s
By late 2025, St Barbara had combined them into a regional development centred on a proposed processing facility near Trafalgar.
Under the revised configuration, Beaver Dam became Old Austen Mine and Cochrane Hill became Old Mitchell Mine. Both would operate as satellite quarry-style pits, with ore transported to 15-Mile for processing and tailings storage.
St Barbara said the redesign eliminated proposed tailings facilities and industrial water withdrawals at the satellite sites while reducing the size of Old Mitchell. It attributed the changes to environmental studies, engineering work and feedback from communities, First Nations and other groups.
An updated pre-feasibility study released Sept. 28 increased estimated gold reserves across the three sites by 17 per cent to 1.44 million ounces, with a projected operating life of 13 years and initial capital costs of $289 million.
The company estimates that the development would generate about $5 billion in economic activity in Nova Scotia, create more than 1,300 construction jobs and support more than 700 jobs during operations.
What happens next
In its Nov. 2 statement, St Barbara said: “IAA of Canada is adamant that the overlapping Federal Impact Assessments can be concluded in time for the Company’s targeted commencement of construction in mid-calendar 2028.”
Nevertheless, the company said it would meet with federal and provincial officials over the next three weeks to determine whether the additional work and costs could threaten that timetable.
St Barbara received draft federal information and studies guidelines Friday evening and intends to discuss their scope with IAAC. The agency said it would issue the guidelines and plans as part of its formal Notice of Commencement.
Meanwhile, the company has secured provincial clearance to restart ore processing at its existing Touquoy operation at Moose River.
St Barbara said the Nova Scotia Department of Environment and Climate Change confirmed Oct. 30 that all prerequisites under amended industrial approvals had been met. The company had scheduled an official reopening and the resumption of ore processing for Nov. 3.
It has also begun planning to seek provincial permission to resume mining within Touquoy’s existing open pit, supplementing its stockpiled ore to extend production beyond 2027 if the 15-Mile development timetable slips.
