Concerns are being raised about a decision to stop water treatment at the Tulsequah Chief mine site because of financial matters.

Chris Zimmer of Rivers Without Borders said in a press release Wednesday the decision by Chieftain Metals Inc. threatens the water quality in some very important salmon streams.

"Chieftain's halt to pollution control is another broken promise and more evidence this mine is simply not viable from an economic, environmental or logistical perspective,” Zimmer said in the release issued from his office in Juneau.

"Closure of the water treatment plant is a failure by Chieftain to meet its legally mandated environmental responsibilities, threatens water quality and wild salmon in the Taku, and demonstrates Chieftain has been unable to interest investors in the mine.”

Zimmer cites a letter from Chieftain Metals to the Whitehorse office of Environment Canada indicating the company will shut down its treatment plant because it was costing much more to operate than anticipated.

The letter to federal inspector Wade Comin from Keith Boyle, Chieftain's chief operating officer, indicates the company is meeting its treatment obligations.

But it can no longer afford to run the plant under the current operating plan while the company continues its pursuit of financing to bring the historic Tulsequah Chief mine back into production, reads the letter.

The letter indicates the company is, however, examining ways to refine the treatment process to reduce costs.

Officials with Chieftain and Environment Canada could not be reached for comment this morning.

Chieftain Metals has invested $9 million since obtaining the old Tulsequah Chief mine site in 2010 from the bankrupt Redfern Resources, the letter indicates.

The original estimate put operating costs for the treatment plant at $89,756 with two staff on site, according to the letter to the Whitehorse office.

Chieftain indicates the costs are four times higher, with a monthly estimate of $362,734 per month and eight staff required.

Instead of producing one cubic metre of sludge per day, the operation is producing 15, the letter indicates.

Chieftain indicated while it is reviewing the project proposal and financing required, it's not in a position to run the treatment plant.

The spokesman for Rivers Without Borders said in an interview early this afternoon the tone of the letter to Environment Canada seems to indicate there is more at play than the cost of the water treatment plant.

It seems, said Zimmer, Chieftain is rethinking the feasibility of the entire project proposal.

He said it's fortunate there is no immediate threat to the river and its salmon and other wildlife.

Nothing is going to go belly-up in the next month or two, and the sky is not falling, Zimmer said.

He said one still has to wonder, nonetheless, where the toxins are ending up, whether they're being embedded in the bottom of the Tulsequah River, flowing into the Taku River, or ending up in the ocean.

And if Chieftain's financial problems stretch beyond the treatment plant, then the long-term impact of untreated water seeping from the old underground operation takes on a much greater concern, he said.

He said if the issue is long-term, then it's important to know what government agency is going to step up to the plate to manage matters.

Chieftain Metals, Zimmer added, was scheduled to release the findings of its feasibility study into the Tulsequah Chief proposal two months ago, but it hasn't.

The mine went into operation in the mid-1950s, but closed shortly afterwards.

Redfern Resources obtained the property in the mid-1990s and advanced the project proposal through what was often strong opposition from both sides of the B.C.-Alaska border, including strong resistance from Atlin's Taku River Tlingit First Nation.

Officials from Chieftain were in the community this past spring to advance discussions on the proposed 160-kilometre road required from Atlin to the mine site.

"The inability of Chieftain, and its predecessor Redfern, to develop this mine and its history of environmental, financial and technical problems clearly demonstrates the mine simply is not viable,” reads the press release from Rivers Without Borders.

"Chieftain says it needs more time to fix the problems and obtain financing. But more time won't help; the Tulsequah Chief is simply a bad idea.”