Al Gedicks: Aquila’s Empty Promises
The Peshtigo Times
December 29, 2020
Dear Editor:
The 2,472 pages of Aquila’s recently submitted Dam Safety permit application is exclusively focused on the engineering aspects of the proposed tailings dam near the Menominee River. There is no discussion of the corporate organizational and human causes of catastrophic failures like the January 2019 Brazilian tailings dam failure that killed 270 people.
A recent report from the consulting firm ERM noted that the engineering causes of tailings dam failures are well known but warned that the organizational and human causes of tailings dam failures are just as significant (www.erm.com/insights/navigating-the-esg-of-tailings-management/).
ERM has reviewed the incident reports of 11 major dam failures that have occurred in the last 12 years. They concluded that “basic organizational and human factors, such as budgeting, operational leadership, safety & risk culture, and competence, played a significant role in each.”
This raises a serious concern about Aquila’s ability to manage the construction, operation, monitoring and emergency action plan for their proposed tailings dam. Aquila’s dam safety application states that “if any potential failure were to develop, it would be detected at an early stage followed by prompt corrective action and remediation. As such, tailings and water would never reach lands adjacent to the Project or the Menominee River.”
Why should the public trust Aquila’s ability to closely monitor all aspects of tailings dam safety when it has failed to comply with the minimal legal requirements for conducting business in the state of Wisconsin. According to the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions (DFI), Aquila’s registration to conduct business in Wisconsin was revoked on October 21, 2015 because it failed to file annual reports and pay fees. The Sierra Club of Wisconsin has filed a complaint with the DFI showing that Aquila has conducted business on multiple occasions from 2015 through at least 2019 despite the revocation. Aquila either controls or owns two mineral deposits in Wisconsin in Marathon and Taylor counties.
Under state law, Aquila cannot continue to conduct business until it pays all outstanding fees, a fine, and must reapply for authorization to conduct business as a foreign corporation.
“This complaint shows that Aquila Resources can’t be trusted to follow Wisconsin law. Will Aquila Resources respect Michigan law if it gains permits for the Back Forty mine proposal in Michigan along the Menominee River? Michigan and Wisconsin residents along the Menominee River and downstream now have more reason to doubt the promises of this company,” said David Blouin, State Mining Committee Chair.
When it comes to evaluating the risk of a tailings dam failure and the release of toxic mine tailings into the Menominee River, the public requires more than empty promises of dam safety oversight. Aquila’s track record to date provides no such assurance.
Al Gedicks