 | On April 7th Mount Polley Mining Corporation received a Mines Act permit amendment allowing for a return to full operations at the Mount Polley mine. It was granted permission to drain treated mining waste water into Quesnel Lake, a glacial lake that provides drinking water to residents of Likely B.C., northeast of Williams Lake. Environment Minister Mary Polak said the decision was made by neutral civil servants based on science that confirmed draining treated water into the river, as opposed to the lake, was riskier. |
 | The Mount Polley mine disaster in the Cariboo region of central British Columbia began 4 August 2014 with a breach of the Mount Polley copper and gold mine tailings pond, releasing its water and slurry mining waste into Polley Lake. The spill flooded Polley Lake, its outflow Hazeltine Creek, and continued into nearby Quesnel Lake and Cariboo River. Mine safety experts called the spill one of the biggest environmental disasters in modern Canadian history. Imperial Metals had a history of operating the pond beyond capacity since at least 2011. |
 Edwards helped organize a $1-million fundraiser for B.C. Premier Christy Clark’s re-election. | The controlling shareholder of Imperial Metals is billionaire N. Murray Edwards. He donated half a million dollars in campaign contributions to the B.C. Liberal party since 2005.  |  |
