Glencore’s investment will bring the arsenic level down to 15 nanograms by 2027, according to the plan announced Thursday by the company’s head of copper operations in North America, Claude Belanger. Last week, Quebec’s public health director said public-health objectives would be achieved at that level. “It’s the maximum we can do” considering the technical knowledge in place, Belanger said.
Among the changes, the plant’s operations will be modernized to reduce the number of steps, a high-capacity air cleaning system will be installed to capture dust and a new energy-efficient casting wheel will be built.
“It does not exist anywhere in the copper industry,” Belanger told reporters. “It takes time to develop projects like that. These are new technologies. We want to improve environmental performance.”
Financial help
Glencore has found itself with a public-relations problem in Quebec over the high levels of…
