Nijman, R. A. Water Quality Assessment and Objectives for the Yakoun River and its Tributaries, Queen Charlotte Islands Prepared by: Robert A. Nijman. Cf. P. Consists of two parts: An overview and a report, of which the overview is also available as a separate document. [Vol. 2] constitutes technical appendix. Includes bibliographic references. ISBN 0-7726-2545-X 1. Water quality - British Columbia - Yakoun River Watershed. 2. Gold Mines and Mining - Environmental Aspects - Yakoun River Watershed. I. British Columbia Environment. Water Quality Branch. II. Title. TD227.B7N54 1995 363.73'942'0971112 C95-960260-7
The Cinola Gold Project is an open-pit gold mine development proposed for Graham Island in the Queen Charlotte Islands of British Columbia. The Cinola Gold Project was under review by the BC Mine Development Review Process until all development-related activity was postponed indefinitely and the review was suspended.
This document sets water quality objectives to protect designated water uses in areas that will be affected by the mine development, should it proceed in the future. Designated water uses for all freshwater areas are aquatic life and wildlife-including their consumption by humans-plus drinking water and recreation, specifically in the Yakoun River. Some of the objectives set for freshwater are subject to confirmation by sensitive bioassays on salmonids and/or algal bioassays performed at the site (in-situ).
Designated water uses in the marine areas of Yakoun and Ferguson Bays are aquatic life and wildlife-including their consumption by humans-and recreation. Objectives set for Ferguson Bay, site of a proposed marine docking facility, are primarily designed to evaluate the impact of possible chemical spills on aqiutic life.
Notable variables for which water quality objectives are set include pH, mercury, and aluminum. Objectives have also been set for variables predicted by the mining company and its consultants to increase in receiving waters due to mining activities, and variables of environmental concern, not all of which have data collected before development occurs (background).
A monitoring program will be designed at a later date by regulatory agencies should the Cinola Project proceed. Many details will depend on final project design. Special monitoring requirements and analyses are detailed in the technical appendix.
Water quality objectives are prepared for specific bodies of fresh, estuarine and coastal marine surface waters of British Columbia as part of the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks' mandate to manage water quality. Objectives are prepared only for those waterbodies and water quality characteristics that may be affected by human activity now or in the near future.
How Objectives Are DeterminedWater quality objectives are based the BC approved and working criteria as well as national water quality guidelines. Water quality criteria and guidelines are safe limits of the physical, chemical, or biological characteristics of water, biota (plant and animal life) or sediment which protect water use. Objectives are established in British Columbia for waterbodies on a site-specific basis. They are derived from the criteria by considering local water quality, water uses, water movement, waste discharges, and socio-economic factors.
Water quality objectives are set to protect the most sensitive designated water use at a specific location. A designated water use is one that is protected in a given location and is one of the following:
Each objective for a location may be based on the protection of a different water use, depending on the uses that are most sensitive to the physical, chemical or biological characteristics affecting that waterbody.
How Objectives Are UsedWater quality objectives routinely provide policy direction for resource managers for the protection of water uses in specific waterbodies. Objectives guide the evaluation of water quality, the issuing of permits, licences and orders, and the management of fisheries and the province's land base. They also provide a reference against which the state of water quality in a particular waterbody can be checked, and help to determine whether basin-wide water quality studies should be initiated.
Water quality objectives are also a standard for assessing the Ministry's performance in protecting water uses. While water quality objectives have no legal standing and are not directly enforced, these objectives become legally enforceable when included as a requirement of a permit, licence, order, or regulation, such as the Forest Practices Code Act, Water Act regulations or Waste Management Act regulations.
Objectives and MonitoringWater quality objectives are established to protect all uses which may take place in a waterbody. Monitoring (sometimes called sampling) is undertaken to determine if all the designated water uses are being protected. The monitoring usually takes place at a critical time when a water quality specialist has determined that the water quality objectives may not be met. It is assumed that if all designated water uses are protected at the critical time, then they also will be protected at other times when the threat is less.
The monitoring usually takes place during a five week period, which allows the specialists to measure the worst, as well as the average condition in the water.
For some waterbodies, the monitoring period and frequency may vary, depending upon the nature of the problem, severity of threats to designated water uses, and the way the objectives are expressed (i.e., mean value, maximum value).
Most projected water quality impacts are confined to the Yakoun River and its tributaries, which flow to Yakoun Bay of Masset Inlet Figure 2). Some tailings pond seepage could have an impact on the Mamin River drainage to the west, with its mouth at Juskatla Inlet. The baseline information used in this review relies largely on data collected by the Barrick Mine Management's consultants.
The Cinola Gold Project was under review by the BC Mine Development Review Process until all development-related activity was postponed by the company. Site-specific water quality objectives are needed to protect designated water uses in areas that will be impacted by the mine's development, should it proceed in the future. A federal-provincial advisory committee of regulatory agencies was established to assist in the development of provisional water quality objectives by the BC Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks.
Yakoun River
Yakoun River drains the largest area of old rivers on Graham Island, at 477 km2. It flows north from the Queen Charlotte Ranges to Yakoun Lake then about 63 km to Masset Inlet at Yakoun Bay near Port Clements. All proposed Cinola mine construction is confined to the Yakoun River watershed, including the mine site, plant site and the High West tailings impoundments and the water storage reservoir.
Barbie Creek
Barbie Creek drains the area around the proposed open pit, as well as higher ground to the west and low swampy areas to the south and east. The catchment area is about 10.2 km2. It flows for about 9 km to its confluence with the Yakoun River, about 30 km upstream from the estuary. Barbie wetland is a flooded area where Barbie, Coreshack and Adit creeks converge, formed when a log sorting area and road construction modified the flow in Barbie Creek. The wetland makes low flow runoff during the summer more severe due to high transpiration by vegetation and evaporation from the relatively large area of low gradient.
Coreshack Creek
Coreshack Creek is about 1 km long draining to Barbie wetland from an area including the proposed waste rock stockpile. The catchment area is 1.5 km2.
Adit Creek
Adit Creek originates in the proposed open pit and flows to Barbie wetland. The catchment area is about 0.3 km2. The flow is mainly ground water from the exploration adit. During the operating life of the proposed mine, flows in Adit Creek would be reduced as some of its drainage area is in the open pit. Some flow would be diverted around the open pit and water discharged from the test adit directed to the water treatment plant. Upon mine abandonment the open pit is to be backfilled and flooded, with water overflowing to Adit Creek.
Florence Creek
Florence Creek is about 19 km long, flowing north to its confluence with the Yakoun River, just upstream from the estuary. The catchment area is about 28.3 km2. Florence Creek headwaters are in the proposed High West area which includes the tailings and waste rock impoundments, the low grade ore stockpile, the water storage reservoir and the mill.
Canoe Creek
Canoe Creek is about 18 km long flowing north to its confluence with the Yakoun River about 5 km upstream from the estuary. Canoe Creek drains relatively high elevation terrain between the proposed mine site and plant site, with mostly low-lying and gently sloping terrain downstream in the Yakoun lowlands. Its catchment area is about 23.4 km2.
Sid Creek
Sid Creek is a small tributary to the Yakoun River located about 2.5 km upstream from Barbie Creek and south of the proposed mine area. The creek drains part of a ridge near the proposed waste rock stockpile as well as a second ridge to the southeast. The catchment area is 0.8 km2.
Clay Creek
Clay Creek is a small tributary to Yakoun River, about 4.5 km long, northeast of Barbie Creek. The catchment area is about 1.6 km2 of both forested and logged regions.
Boucher Creek
Boucher Creek flows to the Mamin River, draining a catchmentof 9.5 km2. Its headwaters are near the headwaters of Florence Creek. There is the possibility of seepage of tailings pond water to Boucher Creek through the No. 2 saddle dam on Florence Creek upon mine abandonment. Any seepage across the dam during mine operation would also have an impact on Boucher Creek.
Fish Resources and Fisheries
Fish resources documented in the Yakoun and Mamin River systems include a 5 species of Pacific salmon (chinook, coho, chum, pink and sockeye), as well as raionbow trout, cutthroat trout and Dolly Varden char. Only the Yakoun River contributes all five species of salmon to Queen Charlotte stocks. Yakoun River sockeye, pink and chinook salmon contribute 45%, 70% and 97%, respectively to total Graham Island stocks.
The Mamin River system, in contrast, is a major producer of chum and pink salmon. The Yakoun River is also a major producer of steelhead in the Queen Charlotte Islands. All five species of salmon in the Yakoun River also use Yakoun Bay, with adults of all species, except coho, staying in the estuary before migration up the river. Transient use of Ferguson Bay is expected by all five species of salmon and Dolly Varden char documented in the Yakoun estuary. Dense eelgrass communities in both Ferguson Bay and Yakoun Bay provide rearing opportunities for fish.
The only licence for water withdrawal within the Yakoun River watershed is for a salmon hatchery (chinook, coho and sockeye) on Gold Creek, held by the Masset Band Council.
Fish resource use includes:
Wildlife Resources
Wildlife resources in the project area include black-tailed deer, possibly Rocky Mountain Elk, black bear and local fur-bearers including beaver, muskrat, river otter, racoon and martin. Many upland bird species inhabit the Cinola project area. The Yakoun River estuary provides habitat for both migratory populations of aquatic birds and raptors as well as feeding habitat for local breeding populations. The Yakoun River estuary received a maximum rating for coastal wetlands on the Queen Charlotte Islands for the water fowl, wildlife, fisheries and productivity contribution to its resource value. Area wildlife use includes both hunting and trapping.
Recreation
Recreational use of the mainstem Yakoun River is high. Users take advantage of angling, swimming, picnicking, camping and hiking opportunities. Sport fishing on the Yakoun Riover occurs throughout the year, with steelhead fishing by residents and tourists being the most important. Yakoun Bay is used for recreation by waterfowl hunters and by people who come for scenic views of the tidal flats.
Mining
City Resources Canada (parent company, Barrack Mine Management Inc.) has a water licence application for diversion, storage and mining use of water from Barbie Creek, Florence Creek, Canoe Creek and Clay Creek, all within the proposed mine project area and tributaries to the Yakoun River.
Wastewater Management Systems
All wastewater management systems woiuld discharge to Barbie Creek or its tributaries. Treatment includes settling ponds to remove sediments and associated metals, a lime-water treatment plant to neutralize acid drainage and precipitate metals and artificial (constructed) wetlands to attenuate nutrients and metals.
Wastewater treatment
The wastewater treatment plant is designed to treat all acid water during mine operation. It will be maintained as a contingency after mine abandonment should discharge from the backfilled pit be acidic. As mentioned previously, the water treatment plant is designed to neutralize all acid drainage and reduce the level of metals.
All facilities in the High West area would discharge to Florence Creek, except seepage to Boucher Creek through a tailings dam. The mine plan directs all potentially affected drainage from the High West area to three sequentially activated impoundments, all isolated from Florence Creek drainage by embankments. Diversion ditches are proposed to redirect unaffected surface water around the impoundments. A settling pond would be located immediately downstream from Impoundment No. 3. Due to the poor quality of the impoundment water and the limited dilution available in Florence Creek, the impoundment is designed for zero discharge to Florence Creek during the operating life of the mine. Process water from the active impoundment would be recycled back to the mill. However, the floating decant at the silt check facility downstream from Impoundment No. 3 would have a discharge and would likely contribute suspended matter to Florence Creek.
Artificial wetlands
The mining company predicts that the water quality in Florence Creek will be restricted to the period following the proposed "de-activation and reclamation" of impoundments in a wetland and pond system. Florence Creek would then be redirected through the reclaimed impoundments. Water quality would be affected by the interaction with tailings and waste rock in the reclaimed impoundments, and by ground water seepage through the impoundments. Receiving water criteria and the site-specific objectives set in this document would be met by the company by controlling the discharge rates from the reclaimed impoundments after mine abandonment.
Transportation
Cargo would be transported to the Graham Island mine site by barge with docking facilities constructed at Ferguson Bay ( Figure 2), inside the east breakwater of MacMillan Bloedel's log boom and dryland sort. A laydown area would be provided for unloading, storage, reloading and shipping of cargo, with a bulk explosives plant located about 360 m south. Limestone and diesel fuel would be stored on site. General cargo unloaded at Ferguson Bay and transported to the mine site include, but are not restricted to the following: limestone, fuel oil and diesel, explosives (such as ammonium nitrate), and reagents including quicklime, sulphuric acid, sodium cyanide, sodium hydroxide, sodium sulphide, copper sulphate, ammonia and chlorine.
Metals
Some low detection limit data for mercury as well as some preliminary aluminum speciation data from Yakoun River tributaries are discussed in the Technical Appendix, and are the basis for objectives for these two variables. Finally, metals burden in fresh water fish tissue as well as marine biota are summarized and discussed in the Technmical Appendix, and are the basis for objectives for tissue.
Mercury
Mercury levels are presently elevated in some fresh waters and fish, with levels projected to increase, by the mining company, in Barbie Creek. Most historical water sample analyses were at too high a detection limit to identify how frequently samples exceeded aquatic life criteria. Depending on the stability of the reclaimed impoundments, mercury levels would only have an impact on Glorence Creek when it reverts to its former channel in the High West area.
Aluminum
Background levels of aluminum in the Yakoun River and its tributaries consistently exceed aquatic life guidelines and the mining company projects increases above mean dissolved aluminum levels in Barbie and Florence Creeks. The main environmental concern is the precipitation of aluminum on fish gills as high pH discharges mix with high aluminum, low pH waters in natural streams.
Barbie Creek in particular may be sensitive to pH change if it is already outside the theoretical minimum aluminum solubility range of pH 5.6 to pH 6.2 when a change occurs. Any change in pH outside this range may increase aluminum toxicity by increasing the inorganic constituents which are available to biological organisms, causing aquatic life guidelines to be exceeded without the addition of any aluminum due to waste discharges. Collection of samples from Cinola streams and the Yakoun River on a routine basis for aluminum speciation is recommended in the Technical Appendix, to form the basis for water quality objectives.
pH
Tributary streams to the Yakoun River have naturally occurring pH levels frequently lower than guidelines to protect aquatic life. With low pH and low buffering capacity to acidic inputs due to low alkalinities, aquatic life in these streams could be at risk from inputs of untreated acid mine drainage. On the other hand, the level of pH in streams could also increase with the Cinola project from the addition of limestone or lime-neutralized effluents.
Other Variables
Other variables are predicted by the mining company to increase in receiving waters due to mining activities: cyanide, nitrate-nitrogen, periphyton, sulphate, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, lead, nickel, silver and zinc.
Additionally, the following variables have been identified and discussed in the Technical Appendix as being of environmental concern, not all of which have data collected before development occurs (background): dissolved oxygen, suspended solids, turbidity, bottom sedimentation (in salmonid spawning areas), nitrite-nitrogen, ammonia-nitrogen and selenium.
Water uses designated for protection for freshwater are aquatic life and wildlife-including their consumption by humans-drinking water and recreation, specifically in the Yakoun River. Some objectives set for freshwater are subject to confirmation.
Designated water uses in the marine areas of Yakoun and Ferguson bays are aquatic life and wildlife-including their consumption by humans-and recreation. Objectives set for Ferguson Bay, site of a proposed marine docking facility, are primarily designed to evaluate the impact of possible chemical spills on aquatic life.
The technical appendix details where objectives apply in specific waterbodies. This varies from the entire waterbody to specific reaches and often excludes small initial dilution zones downstream from waste discharges.
To protect water uses in a waterbody, objectives specify a range of values for characteristics (variables) that may affect these uses. These values are maximum and/or minimum values that are not to be exceeded.
Some readers may be unfamiliar with terms such as maximum concentration, 30-day average concentration and not applicable (NA). Maximum concentration means that a value for a specific variable generally should not be exceeded; 30-day average concentration means that a value should not be exceeded during a period of 30 days when five or more samples are collected at approximately equal time intervals. Not applicable (NA) means that water uses are not threatened for that particular variable.
| Water Body | Boucher and Coreshack Creeks | Florence and Barbie Creeks | Adit and Sid Creeks | Yakoun River | Canoe and Clay Creeks |
| designated uses | aquatic life and wildlife (including consumption by humans) | aquatic life and wildlife (including consumption by humans), recreation, drinking water | aquatic life and wildlife (including consumption by humans) | ||
| cyanide (WAD) | less than 5 micrograms/L 30-day mean and 10 micrograms/L maximum | not applicable | |||
| ammonia-nitrogen | ammonia tables | not applicable | |||
| nitrite-nitrogen | nitrite table | not applicable | |||
| nitrate-nitrogen | 10 mg/L maximum | not applicable | |||
| dissolved oxygen | 11 mg/L in water column and 8 mg/L in interstitial water when salmonid larvae and embryos are present 8 mg/L in water column when other salmonid life stages are present no significant decrease over background (95% confidence level) due to anthropogenic activities when background levels are less than the levels given above |
not applicable | |||
| non-filterable residue | less than or equal to (background + 10 mg/L) when background is less than or equal to 100 mg/L less than or equal to (background + 10%) when background is greater than 100 mg/L |
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| turbidity | less than or equal to (background + 5 NTU) when background is less than or equal to 50 NTU less than or equal to (background + 10%) when background is greater than 50 NTU |
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| sedimentation | in all salmonid spawning areas the benthic accumulation of fines less than 3 mm in diameter should not be significantly increased (95% confidence level) over background due to anthrpogenic activities on a by weight basis | ||||
| periphyton | less than 100 mg/m2 chlorophyll-a | less than 50 mg/m2 chlorophyll-a | not applicable | ||
| pH | not applicable | see Table 5. | not applicable | see Table 5. | not applicable |
| sulphate | 100 mg/L maximum | not applicable | |||
| dissolved aluminum | not applicable | no significant increase due to waste discharges | not applicable | ||
| total arsenic | 0.050 mg/L maximum | not applicable | |||
| total cadmium | 0.2 micrograms/L maximum when hardness is between 0 and 60 mg/L as CaCO3 0.8 micrograms/L maximum when hardness exceeds 60 mg/L as CaCO3 if background levels exceed these levels there should be no significant increase (95% confidence level) |
not applicable | |||
| total chromium | 2 micrograms/L maximum or no significant increase (95% confidence level) if background exceeds this level | not applicable | |||
| total iron | 0.3 mg/L maximum or no significant increase (95% confidence level) if background exceeds this level | not applicable | |||
| total lead | 3 micrograms/L maximum in water 0.8 micrograms/g wet weight in fish tissue, or no significant increase (95% confidence level) if background exceeds this level |
not applicable | |||
| total copper | less than 2 micrograms/L maximum in water as a 30-day mean when hardness is less than or equal to 50 mg/L as CaCO3 less than 12 micrograms/L maximum in water as a 30-day mean at a hardness of 300 mg/L as CaCO3 or no significant increase (95% confidence level) if background exceeds this level |
not applicable | |||
| total nickel | 25 micrograms/L maximum | not applicable | |||
| total selenium | 1 microgram/L maximum in water 3 micrograms/g wet weight maximum in biota 5 micrograms/g dry weight maximum in sediment |
not applicable | |||
| total silver | 0.1 microgram/L maximum | not applicable | |||
| dissolved zinc | 10 micrograms/L maximum or +20% of background if background exceeds this level | not applicable | |||
| total mercury in fish | not applicable | 0.5 micrograms/g wet weight maximum in cutthroat, rainbow and Dolly Varden | not applicable | 30-day wet weight mean of 20 micrograms/g in cutthroat and 15 micrograms/g in rainbow and Dolly Varden 0.5 micrograms/g maximum wet weight in all species |
not applicable |
| total mercury in water | not applicable | less than 20 ng/L as a 30-day mean and 50 ng/L as a maximum in Barbie Creek less than 10 ng/L as a 30-day mean and 20 ng/L as a maximum in Florence Creek |
not applicable | less than 20 ng/L as a 30-day mean and 50 ng/L as a maximum | not applicable |
| 1. For particulate matter, increases in non-filterable residues and turbidity are not to be cumulative from upstream to downstream and thus apply to groups of discharges. 2. Dissolved oxygen and aluminum, particulate matter, total cadmium, copper, chromium and lead objectives are to be interpreted as meaning that if monitoring shows an increase of more than 20% over background, then an increase in monitoring frequency would be required to show whether the change is in fact significant at the 95% confidence level. 3. The dissolved aluminum objective is provisional until inorganic monomeric aluminum data are available for all streams with potential pH shifts from mining activity. 4. For total mercury in fish the recommended minimum sample size is 10 of each species. 5. For mercury, copper and WAD cyanide the 30-day average is based on a minimum of 5 samples collected at equal intervals over 30 days. 6. For periphyton the objective is an average based on at least 5 randomly located samples from natural substrates at each site. 7. NA is not applicable. |
| River or Creek | Qualifications | pH objectives |
| Yakoun River | none, applies everywhere | a + or - 0.5 pH unit change over background |
| Florence Creek | in areas with no significant change in hardness (which is less than 50 mg/L) or sulphate (which is less than 30 mg/L) | There is no restriction on pH change over background within the pH range of 5.5 to 6.2. |
| When the pH is less than 5.5 there is a 0.2 pH unit decrease and a 0.5 pH unit increase limit over background. | ||
| When the pH is greater than 6.2 there is a + or - 0.5 pH unit change limit over background. | ||
| Barbie Creek | in areas with no substantial increases in hardness (which is less than or equal to 50 mg/L) or sulphate (which is less than or equal to 30 mg/L) | There is no restriction on pH change over background within the pH range of 5.5 to 6.2. |
| When the pH is less than 5.5 there is a no pH decrease and a 0.5 pH unit increase limit over background. | ||
| When the pH is greater than 6.2 there is a no pH increase and a 0.5 pH unit decrease limit over background. | ||
| Barbie Creek | in areas with a significant increase in hardness (which is greater than 50 mg/L) or sulphate (which is greater than 30 mg/L) | There is a + or - 0.5 pH unit change limit over background. |
| The Yakoun objective is interim until aluminum speciation data is collected. |
| Water Bodies | Yakoun Estuary and Bay | Ferguson Bay |
| designated water uses | aquatic life and wildlife (including consumption by humans) and recreation | |
| ammonia-nitrogen | not applicable | 30-day means and maxima as in Tables 7 and 8. |
| chlorine | not applicable | in terms of chlorine-produced oxidants: 40 micrograms/L maximum during the 2 hour period following a spill |
| cyanide | 1 microgram/L maximum weak acid dissociable cyanide | |
| particulate matter: NFR-non-filterable residue | not applicable | induced NFR less than or equal to 10 mg/L when background is less than or equal to 100 mg/L |
| particulate matter: turbidity | not applicable | induced turbidity less than or equal to 5 mg/L when background is less than or equal to 50 NTU or less than or equal to 10% when background exceeds 50 NTU |
| pH | not applicable | 7.0 to 8.7 |
| sulphide | not applicable | 2 micrograms/L maximum undissociated H2S |
| total copper | not applicable | 30-day mean of less than or equal to 2 micrograms/L total copper maximum of 3 micrograms/L total copper |
| total lead | in biota: 0.8 micrograms/g wet weight maximum in Dungeness crab, mussel and clams or no significant increase (95% confidence level) if background levels exceed this objective |
not applicable |
| total mercury | in biota: mussels and clams-0.1 micrograms/g wet weight maximum Dungeness crab-0.10 micrograms/g mean and 0.20 microgram/g maximum as a wet weight shrimp-0.18 micrograms/g mean and 0.50 micrograms/g maximum as a wet weight |
not applicable |
| PAHs in sediments in micrograms/g dry weight, maximum | not applicable | total LMWPAHs-0.5 naphthalene-0.2 acenapthylene-0.06 acenaphthene-0.05 fluorene-0.05 phenanthrene-0.15 anthracene-0.1 total HMWPAHs-1.2 fluoranthene-0.17 pyrene-0.26 benzo(a)anthracene-0.13 chrysene-0.14 benzo-fluoranthenes-0.32 benzo(a)pyrene-0.16 indeno(1,2,3-c,d)pyrene-0.06 dibenzo(a,h)anthracene-0.06 benzo(g,h,i)perylene-0.07 |
| 1. Ferguson Bay objectives are primarily designed to evaluate the impact of a spill with regards to aquatic life. Routine monitoring would be for PAHs in sediments and particulate matter variables (non-filterable residue and turbidity), with the other objectives monitored only should a spill occur. 2. The Yakoun biota objectives should be based on a minimum of 10 samples of each species. 3. The Yakoun River biota lead objectives are to be interpreted as meaning that if monitoring shows an increase of more than 20% over background, then an increase in monitoring frequency would be required to show whether the change is in fact significant at the 95% confidence level. 4. NA mean not applicable. |
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