RESERVE MINES, N.S. — Cement barricades and orange pylons are now blocking the entrances to the the road leading to Donkin mine as its fate remains unclear.
The road, which was built to transport coal back and forth from Donkin mine to Sydney harbour, hasn’t been used although completed last August due to delays in finishing the intersections.
But now there is no need for hauling coal from the mine since Kameron Collieries announced it was stopping production on March 30.
Kameron Collieries owns the road as it was required to purchase the land needed to build it and paid for the construction of it. The provincial government partnered with the company to cover costs and construction of the intersections, which included widening them.
When asked if they had any plans for the road, Kameron Collieries replied, “No comment.”
The provincial government, which has spent more than $1.62 million on the intersection work, said it has no plans to take over ownership of the road.
“The Donkin coal haul road is a private road and not owned by the province. It will be barricaded on both ends to keep vehicles out,” Department of Transportation and Infrastructure spokesman Peter McLaughlin wrote in an email.
“The department will close off the proposed new intersection at Brookside Street. The new intersection at Airport Road and Grand Lake Road will also be closed off completely and the access will remain at the old existing intersection. The contractor will be back this spring to complete the work to close off the intersections and close down the construction sites.”
Since opening in February 2017, the mine has been plagued with problems, including 12 rockfalls and a roof collapse.
On March 10, a group of U.S. mining experts toured the mine because of rising concerns over the rockfall issue.
As reported in the Cape Breton Post on March 30, Kameron Collieries spokesman Paul MacEachern said the company wasn’t planning on selling the mine and had a skeleton crew currently working to keep water out of the mine and continue maintenance of them.
