Following the close of a 30-day public notice period, DEC prepared an APDES proposed final permit for Sumitomo Metal Mining Pogo LLC. Prior to making the final decision to issue the permit, DEC invites you to view the proposed final permit and associated documents. You can access the proposed final individual permit and associated documents at DEC’s Wastewater Discharge Authorization Program web page at: http://www.dec.state.ak.us/water/wwdp/index.htm

Proposed Final Permit Review
Start Date:      May 5, 2017
End Date:      May 12, 2017
Permit No.:    AK0053341

Proposed Permit Coverage:
The Pogo Mine is an underground gold mine that has been in production since 2006. The mine produces approximately 3,000 tons of ore per day (tpd) and is permitted to feed gold ore at a rate of up to 3,500 tpd. The mine produces between 280,000 to 350,000 ounces of gold annually. The facility consists of the underground mine, a surface gold mill, a drystack tailings facility, two man camps, road access and power distribution, and a water management system for water treatment and discharge.

The proposed final APDES permit allows for two outfalls that discharge to the Goodpaster River. Outfall 001 consists of treated contact water from the mine site and drainage from the underground mine. After treatment, this water is augmented with fresh water from the Goodpaster River and subsequently discharged. Outfall 002 consists of treated domestic wastewater (human body wastes from toilets and urinals, as well as wastewater from sinks, showers, laundries, safety showers, eyewash stations, and galleys.)

The proposed permit authorizes a mixing zone in the Goodpaster River at Outfall 002 for fecal coliform bacteria, nitrate/nitrite, pH, dissolved oxygen, arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, manganese, mercury, and zinc. The maximum size of the authorized mixing zone is 30 square feet.

Determination:
DEC has determined to reissue the above listed individual permit.

DEC Contact:
Will Collingwood
(907) 465-6855
will.collingwood@alaska.gov

Administrative Record:
The APDES preliminary draft permit, fact sheet, and associated documents are available for public review at the DEC offices located in Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Juneau. Please contact the office of your choice to arrange for hard copies of the documents to be available for your review.

555 Cordova Street                 610 University Avenue                        410 Willoughby Ave #303
Anchorage, AK 99501            Fairbanks, AK 99709                          Juneau, AK 99811
907-269-6285                     907-451-2100                                  907-465-5300

The documents are also accessible from the DEC website at:
http://www.dec.state.ak.us/water/wwdp/index.htm