Victoria Gold Corp. (TSXV: VGCX) published its annual sustainability report on Tuesday intended to highlight the company’s commitment to industry leading practices in the Yukon.
The report provides detailed information regarding Victoria and the Eagle Gold Mine’s 2022 performance against pre-set critical environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) metrics such as environmental sustainability, cultural inclusion, employee health and safety and corporate governance.
“We are pleased to showcase our inaugural ESG report which provides clear information and transparency regarding key sustainability and performance metrics,” said John McConnell, president and CEO.
“While operating in a top North American mining jurisdiction with a long mine life and strong ESG metrics we have a great story to tell and we are just getting started.”
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Victoria Gold records zero fatalities in 2022
The report notes that the entire Victoria Gold team received the Association for Mineral Exploration (AME) E.A. Scholz Award for Excellence in Mine Development in BC or the Yukon early February. The reward is a recognition of the company’s achievement over the past decade in developing and successfully bringing the Eagle Gold Mine into production.
The report also recognizes the company’s strong health and safety performance, having produced a low lost-time incident frequency of 0.13 per cent. Also, Victoria is the largest private sector employer in the Yukon, making the company a significant contributor, sourcing 38 per cent of their workforce locally. The company had zero fatalities in 2022.
Image via Victoria Gold.
The company also contributed $17 million in direct wages and benefits to its Yukon employee workforce.
As of December 2022, Victoria employed 471 workers in addition to 177 direct-hire contractors at the mine. The majority of mine site employees work on a two-week shift rotation. The company paid $197 million to contractors and service providers in 2022, with 62 percent of the payment sourced from local businesses within the Yukon.
Image via Victoria Gold
The report notes the Eagle Gold Mine operations involve cyanide heap leaching, so no tailings are generated, and also consequently, no tailing impoundments. In 2022, the company produced 10,407 kilo-tonnes of waste rock.
Victoria Gold has given out over 155 scholarships
The property lies in the traditional territory of the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun (FNNND), but not located on the First Nation’s settlement lands. Victoria also has no incidents of violations against the rights of Indigenous peoples.
The company jointly developed and implemented the Comprehensive Cooperation and Benefits Agreement (CBA) with the FNNND in October 2011.
Image from Victoria Gold.
The CBA applies to Victoria’s Eagle Gold Mine and all exploration undertaken in the FNNND traditional territory. Part of the benefits agreement includes a scholarship program, originally established in 2012, to help support the First Nation’s citizens attending a university, college or trades school on a full time basis. Since its inception, 155 scholarships have been given out to FNNND citizens with a total disbursement of over $155,000.
Additionally in 2015, Victoria’s First Nation’s Heritage and Culture Department created a cultural awareness training program called “Cultural Awareness When Working Within the Traditional Territory of the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun.” The presentation helps build awareness of the First Nation’s history, values, traditions and perspective on responsible development.
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