Three engineers have been disciplined by the Engineers and Geoscientists British Columbia eight years after the Mount Polley disaster.
The disciplinary actions, which include fines and other penalties, followed a number of investigations lasting several years.
Todd Martin, who was the senior geotechnical engineer responsible for the geotechnical engineering at the tailings storage facility, has admitted that parts of his work did not follow prudent engineering practice.
Martin had failed to recommend drilling from the 2011 embankment crest to improve the characterisation of embankment foundation soils. He also admitted to failing to record important field observations in 2011, EGBC said.
Martin will pay a C$25,000 fine (US$19,500), and will pay C$69,000 towards EGBC's legal fees. Martin ceased to be an engineer in 2018, and resigned his engineering license in 2020.
Laura Fidel was an engineer with a division of AMEC Americas, and served as both the Engineer of Record and Project Manager for the TSF from spring 2013 until February 2014. EGBC found that Fidel failed to sufficiently observe and monitor the tailings dam, by not ensuring a sufficient amount of site visits and not monitoring seepage flows.
EGBC recommended that Fidel's engineering license be suspended for two months. She has also been ordered to attend three courses on tailings management, tailings facility design, and engineering management for mine geowaste facilities.
Stephen Rice, now retired, was an engineer at AMEC Americas. The EGBC disciplinary panel found that Rice did not fulfil the role of review engineer and exhibited unprofessional conduct to allow a junior engineer (Fidel) to serve as Engineer of Record, despite her limited experience with embankment design.
The panel found that Rice failed to adequately observe and monitor the tailings dam, failed to document his review work, and failed to ensure that an excavation at the toe of the embankment was assessed.
Rice was fined C$25,000, and he also agreed to pay C$107,500 towards EGBC's legal costs. He resigned his engineering license in 2018.
After the Mount Polley incident, EGBC produced professional practice guidelines for site characterisation for dam foundations, as well as updated its guidelines on ‘Engineer of Record' duties. It is currently updating guidelines for dam safety reviews.
BC has also granted EGBC the power to regulate engineering and geoscience firms.
"Our robust regulatory framework will enhance public protection by introducing established standards of practice for all firms engaging in professional engineering and geoscience, which will be enforced through regular audits to ensure compliance," EGBC said.
