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Pogo Mine, Notice of Proposed Alaska Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (APDES) Individual Permit

Notice of Proposed Alaska Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (APDES) Individual Permit to Discharge to Waters of the United States

A draft permit, fact sheet, and associated documents are available for review. For inquiries or to request copies of documents, contact:

DEC Contact: 
Tim Pilon
610 University Avenue
Fairbanks, AK 99709
907-451-2136
tim.pilon@alaska.gov 

Permit Number: 
AK0053341

Applicant:
Northern Star Resources Limited
Pogo Mine
38 miles northeast of Delta Junction, Alaska
PO Box 145
Delta Junction, AK 99737

Permit Coverage:

Facility Activity: 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. Facilities consist 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.

Discharge Location and Description: The former and draft APDES permits allow two outfalls that discharge to the Goodpaster River. Outfall 001 consists of treated mine drainage water from the mine site and underground mine. After treatment, wastewater 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).

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

Tentative Determination:
DEC has tentatively decided to reissue a discharge permit to the above listed applicant.

Public Comments:
Written comments or requests for a public hearing on the APDES draft permit must be submitted within 30 days of the issuance of this public notice. Any person desiring to comment on the permit may submit comments electronically via the DEC public notice site (preferred) at https://water.alaskadec.commentinput.com?id=x2Q9ZmjSie. Alternatively, you may direct written comments and requests to the attention of the DEC contact/permit writer at the email address or postal address identified above.

All comments should include the name, address, telephone number, and email address of the commenter and a concise statement of comment on the permit condition(s) and the relevant facts upon which the comment is based. Comments of either support or concern that are directed at specific, cited permit requirements are appreciated. Mailed comments and requests must be postmarked on or before the expiration date of the public notice.

DEC will consider all comments when making the final decision and will respond to received comments in a Response to Comments document provided when DEC reissues a final permit. The Response to Comments will be made available to the public.

Any interested person may submit a written request for a public hearing if no hearing has already been scheduled. A request for a public hearing shall state the nature of the issues to be raised, as well as the requester's name, address, telephone number, and email address. DEC will hold a public hearing whenever DEC finds, based on requests, that there is significant degree of public interest in a draft permit. DEC may also hold a public hearing if a hearing might clarify one or more issues involved in a permit decision or for other good reason in DEC’s discretion.

DEC will transmit the final permit, fact sheet (amended as appropriate), and Response to Comments to anyone who provided comments during the public review period or requested to be notified of DEC final decision.


Deadline for written comments or request for public hearing:
September 9, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. ADT

Administrative Record:
The APDES permit modification, statement of basis, permittee’s modification request, 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 St.
Anchorage, AK 99501
907-269-6285

610 University Ave.
Fairbanks, AK 99709
907-451-2100

P.O. Box 1800
Juneau, AK 99811
Location: 410 Willoughby St., Ste. 303, Juneau
907-465-5300

If you would like further information or to see any additional supporting technical documents, contact Tim Pilon. The documents are also accessible from the DEC website at: https://dec.alaska.gov/water/wastewater/.

To receive email notifications about the APDES Program, including when permits are available to review, follow the link below to join the APDES email list.
http://list.state.ak.us/mailman/listinfo/DEC-APDES/ 

Disability Reasonable Accommodation Notice
DEC complies with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. If you are a person with a disability who may need special accommodation to participate in this public process, please contact ADA Coordinator Megan Kohler at 907-269-4198 or TDD Relay Service 1-800-770-8973/TTY or dial 711 prior to the expiration date of this public notice to ensure that any necessary accommodations can be provided.
 

Attachments, History, Details

Attachments

None

Revision History

Created 8/9/2023 1:26:06 PM by jrschlosser
Modified 8/9/2023 1:27:13 PM by jrschlosser
Modified 8/9/2023 1:28:07 PM by jrschlosser
Modified 8/9/2023 1:31:09 PM by jrschlosser

Details

Department: Environmental Conservation
Category: Public Notices
Sub-Category:
Location(s): Statewide
Project/Regulation #: AK0053341
 
Publish Date: 8/11/2023
Archive Date: 9/10/2023
 
Events/Deadlines: