text: The HHRA report was published in May. The Ecological Risk Assessment (ERA) report was published in December and detailed the work done by Golder to understand the ecological significance of the tailings dam breach of 2014. The ERA report was completed as a component of the MPMC's remediation strategy to help inform rehabilitation work in affected areas. The ERA considered levels of metal contaminants in the soil, water, and sediment. Territorial and Aquatic risk assessments were concluded as part of the investigative work of the report. The report found excess concentrations of copper and vanadium in the soil however it was determined that the tailings were not acid generating and were unlikely to leach metals. The ERA determined the cause of some tree death post-breach and attributed a root smothering effect of the tailings effluent in the forested region. It was determined that tailings decreased soil aeration causing a poor environment for soil biota to support tree growth and survival. The food chain of local wildlife was modeled to determine if copper and vanadium exceeded standards. The cumulative dose according to these models was determined to be below a conservative threshold for most wildlife species. The report concluded low risk associated with copper and vanadium contamination. The bioavailability of the metals was likewise determined to be low. As part of the aquatic risk assessment, copper and arsenic were investigated in the sediment, while copper was the contaminant of potential concern investigated in the water of Polley Lake, Hazeltine Creek, Quesnel Lake, and Quesnel River. It was determined that copper levels decreased below the accepted guideline through 2015 in both lakes and Quesnel River, but not in Hazeltine Creek which was the site of active remediation and restructuring. The plants, water-column invertebrates, and fish in Polley Lake and Quesnel Lake are not expected to face long-term effects of the 2014 breach, according to ERA report. Likewise, risk to fish-consuming wildlife was also determined to be low. The deep ecological benthic ecosystem was also considered to have little risk from copper as a limiting factor in the recovery of these organisms at the sediment layer. The ERA concluded that ecological risks associated with metals released by the dam breach and tailings spill are low.