• Upcycling waste: researchers pitch newest solution for Giant Mine’s arsenic trioxide

  Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
  Date: 2026-09-20 10:00:00.0
  Tags: [National, Mining, Environment, Resources, Technology]

  Researchers led by Tamara Etmannski at the University of British Columbia have successfully converted arsenic trioxide samples from the Giant Mine into metallic arsenic suitable for use as semiconductors in electronic devices. The process involves dissolving the toxic byproduct in water and adding a chemical reductant to separate out pure metallic arsenic. The Giant Mine Oversight Board, chaired by Graeme Clinton, is reviewing the research alongside alternative permanent solutions—such as turning the waste into glass—to address the 237,000 tonnes of toxic waste currently stored and frozen underground in Yellowknife. While scaling the process to an operational plant would take approximately 10 years and does not fully offset the plant's capital cost through market sales alone, proponents note it could eliminate long-term maintenance and storage liabilities.

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• An alternative to treat and release? Alberta to approve $4.6 million grant for tailings ponds water treatment research

  Source: Alberta - Edmonton Journal (Legislature & Capital)
  Date: 2026-09-17 18:10:50.0
  Tags: [Alberta, Energy, Environment, Mining, Technology, Indigenous]

  Emissions Reduction Alberta offered a conditional $4.6 million grant to Tũ Nipi Water Solutions—an Indigenous-owned venture formed by Fort McKay Oil Services and BioLargo Canada based in the Fort McKay First Nation—to fund research and development of water-treatment solutions for tailings ponds in the Athabasca oilsands region. The funding, expected to roll out in early 2027 for closed-lab testing, aims to develop alternatives to controversial treat-and-release wastewater proposals for handling the more than 1.4 billion cubic metres of fluid tailings currently stored in the province. The initiative aligns with recommendations from Alberta's Oil Sands Mine Water Steering Committee and incorporates traditional knowledge alongside advanced cleantech applications.

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