In 2000, Manitoba established the Orphaned and Abandoned Mine (OAM) Site Rehabilitation Program to address the public safety and environmental health concerns associated with orphaned and abandoned mine sites.
In November 2019, the OAM Site Rehabilitation Program was transferred to Manitoba Environment and Climate Change to support mandate and policy alignment as the department works to advance a cleaner and greener Manitoba.
Manitoba Environment and Climate Change is responsible for the rehabilitation of orphaned and abandoned mines in the province, which include all:
- impacted or contaminated sites that it owns or for which it is otherwise responsible; and
- orphaned sites for which a responsible party cannot be identified or does not have the financial means to undertake remediation.
The OAM Program aims at addressing the environmental and public safety concerns that remain with orphaned and abandoned mine sites in Manitoba. In addition, the program will continue the remediation and monitoring work at orphaned and abandoned sites to reduce governments risk of non-compliance with federal and provincial regulatory requirements.
Manitoba is committed to ensuring a rapid pace of remediation efforts to ensure economic growth, environmental protection and human safety from high risk mining legacy sites in the province.
In addition to the OAM program, the province has also dedicated resources to the remediation of other environmental liability contaminated sites that are the responsibility of Manitoba. For general information about contaminated sites in Manitoba, visit Contaminated Sites Program.