Greens Creek achieves environmental milestone

An Alaska mine located in one of the nation's most unique ecosystems has received the prestigious ISO 14001 certificate for its environmental management practices. Greens Creek silver, gold, zinc and lead underground mine is on Admiralty Island National Monument in southeast Alaska's Tongass National Forest. The old growth temperate rainforest on the island provides habitat for about 1,700 brown bears - more than in the Lower 48 states combined - as well as around 2,500 bald eagles, black-tailed deer, salmon and a host of other species.

Greens Creek is a joint venture between Kennecott Minerals and Hecla Mining Co. Its ISO 14001 certification became effective Dec. 20, after a rigorous audit by NSF International Strategic Registration of Ann Arbor, Mich. Coincidentally, the announcement came a few months after Alaska's Red Dog zinc mine announced its own ISO 14001 certification.

Employees have an environmental ethic

"It's been even easier because of where we are," Greens Creek's environmental manager, Bill Oelklaus, told Mining News. "We live here in Southeast Alaska because we like the out-of-doors and a pristine environment, so our employees already have an environmental ethic." Greens Creek had previously met the necessary environmental standards, but it took about five months to complete the paperwork required for the audit, Oelklaus added.

"The environmental management system is there to embed in the workforce a consciousness about how their jobs may affect the environment and to ensure that negative things don't happen," Oelklaus said. When accidents do occur, their consequences are minimized. In January some sulfuric acid was spilled in the mill area, and by following the correct procedures the damage was limited to the pipes which had broken in the first place and caused the spill. "It had the potential to be much worse," Oelklaus said.

"Achieving ISO 14001 registration on the first attempt is a compliment to all employees and their ongoing commitment to environmental protection at Greens Creek," the mine's general manager, Rich Heig, said. "Greens Creek's effective controls to protect the environment will continuously improve through ongoing third-party independent reviews."