A virtual tour of the Goderich Salt Mine
Robert McVeigh grew up in the small coal mining town of New Waterford, NS on beautiful Cape Breton Island. A graduate of Dalhousie University’s Mining Engineering program he began his career in mining in 2008 with Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan’s New Brunswick Division in Sussex, NB. He began full time employment with PCS as a Mine Engineer in 2010. While working for PCS Robert saw the closure of an existing mine that had been in operation since the early 80’s and then played a key role in the development of a new $2.2 billion dollar operation consisting of a mine and mill complex capable of hoisting 7 million tons per year, by far the largest in Atlantic Canada.
The New Brunswick Potash operation was shuttered in 2016, giving Robert a year to travel North and Central America. He was approached by a recruiter about a job in Goderich, ON with Compass Minerals and made the tough decision to relocate from his home in the Maritimes to Goderich to work at the Sifto Salt Mine. This Canadian salt mine holds the distinction of being the largest salt mine in the world. It is located 1800 feet under Lake Huron. For perspective, that’s just 15 feet shorter than the CN Tower in Toronto! The salt was once deposited 400 million years ago by an ocean that covered the Great Lakes Basin.
Robert is the Engineering Manager with Compass Minerals at their Goderich Salt Mine, where he works with a team of highly talented subject matter experts in the fields of Surveying, Rock Mechanics, Ground Control, Geology, Ventilation, and Short and Long Range Mine Planning.
Robert will take us on a virtual tour of the mine, don’t miss it.