Teck Metals to plead guilty over pollution in Trail, B.C.

Teck Metals Ltd. is expected to be hit with substantial fines after the company admits in court next week to causing pollution in Trail, in southeast B.C.

The provincial court registry shows Teck, which operates the largest lead-zinc smelter in the world in the small town on the banks of the Columbia River, intends to plead guilty Monday to 15 charges.

The charges, which follow an investigation by Environment and Climate Change Canada, are for depositing deleterious substances and “introducing business related waste” into the environment. Copper and gold smelting has been a part of the community of about 7,000 people since 1896.