When Diavik was first constructed, it made in an impact in more ways than one.
They ended up de-watering Lac de Gras, albeit marginally. According to Diavik's presentation to city council on May 27, they de-waterd Lac de Gras by about one per cent.
Still, it had its consequences, mainly a loss of fish habitat. Come June 4, it'll be time to start making up for that loss.
"Originally, we were going to compensate by building a fish habitat inside the lake," said Mark Nelson, a spokesperson for Rio Tinto who presented Diavik's plan to city council on Monday. "After engagement with communities and other stakeholders, we realized that's not what everyone wanted."
Instead, Nelson said they'll be restoring Frame Lake in downtown Yellowknife. Specifically, they'll be increasing the fish habitat there.
McNiven Beach on Frame Lake was a popular recreation spot until the late 1970s.
"People were swimming in Frame Lake. I don't think anyone would want to swim in Frame Lake now," Nelson said.
Whether it's pollution, more algae or low oxygen levels, all of those factors have contributed to Frame Lake's downfall, according to Diavik's presentation.
They add that the lake's low oxygen levels mean that no fish can survive there.
Diavik's solution: aeration. The plan is to install a deep water aeration system. It's a giant floating plant, consisting of the following: upstream pipes to aerate the water as it rises, a degassing chamber to remove gases from the aerated water and downstream pipes to pump the vented degassed water back into the lower levels of the lake.
It also shouldn't affect the thickness of the ice on the lake come winter time, Nelson said.
"Once installed, for safety impacts, (the) Great Slave Snowmobile Association is going to be sending out messages to their membership," he explained, adding the aeration device will stick out of the lake by a meter or so.
By the sounds of it, this project, or more accurately, the results its meant to bring, will take years to come. Depending on their results, Diavik hopes that Frame Lake will have fish again by summer of 2026.
"If that's successful, we'll look to hand the project over to partner organizations to take over long term maintenance and monitoring," said Nelson.
It should take a couple days to get the system into the lake, he added.
Mayor Rebecca Alty had her fingers crossed when it came to reintroducing fish to Frame Lake. After Diavik's presentation, she gave her thanks.
"We'll stay tuned for the project updates," she said.