The province’s Public Accounts Committee will begin its examination of the Auditor General’s report on why methylmercury mitigation was not taken prior to the flooding of the Muskrat Falls reservoir in 2019.

Indigenous groups had requested that the land be cleared and capped before flooding to prevent the buildup of methylmercury from rotting vegetation.

The Public Accounts Committee requested in October of 2019 that the Auditor General investigate why wetland capping did not take place prior to flooding.

According to the report, an independent expert advisory committee made recommendations that could have been implemented before flooding began, but government’s decision making process concluded too late, and no physical mitigation occurred.

The AG concluded that the Department of Municipal Affairs and Environment did not appropriately communicate and monitor timelines and deadlines of the Independent Expert Advisory Committee for reservoir mitigation at Muskrat Falls, however the report did not find any evidence that government intentionally missed the wetland capping deadline.

The Auditor General says there were numerous missed opportunities to understand and manage the urgency of the wetland capping timelines, which resulted in no physical mitigation at the site.

Meanwhile, the government issued a statement, saying it will take some time to review the report in detail before commenting.

Officials did note that regular monitoring of methylmercury levels continues, adding at no time have they presented a risk to public health.