2009-003 Brent Murphy

Brent Murphy (NWT Archaeologist’s Permit 2009‐003)

On behalf of Fortune Minerals Ltd. NICO Cobalt‐Gold‐Bismuth‐Copper Project (NICO Project) Brent Murphy of Golder Associates Ltd. (Golder) completed a Heritage Resources Impact Assessment (HRIA) for their mine site and all‐weather access road. The NICO Project is a mine proposed in the Wek’eezhii Settlement Area approximately 50 km northeast of Whati and 10 km northeast of Hislop Lake. Previous studies that have been completed on behalf of Fortune Minerals Ltd. for their NICO Project include an HRIA for their bulk sampling program for an underground gold mine operation and proposed all weather road. The purpose of the current HRIA was to assess areas that were not included in the previous studies including changes to the mine site footprint and borrow sources for the all weather road. Keeny Wedawin, TliCho First Nation, and Adam Hossack, Golder, assisted with the investigation.

The HRIA was concentrated on the seven identified borrow sources for the proposed all weather road, changes to the road and changes to the mine footprint including a proposed runway. The survey included aerial survey of all areas and pedestrian survey and shovel testing of areas that were considered to exhibit moderate to high potential for heritage resources. These included river and creek crossing, uplands, ridges and elevated areas adjacent to water bodies. In total approximately 520 shovel tests were excavated in the study area and two previously recorded sites were revisited. No artefacts were recovered from these tests.

(Edited by Shelley Crouch, Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre)