Hillsborough is a coal-mining company headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. We produce thermal coal at our Quinsam Mine on Vancouver Island and are in the process of developing the Echo Hill Mine in northeastern B.C. Quinsam is the only underground coal mine in British Columbia, and the only underground thermal-coal mine in all of Canada. It has been in operation for more than 20 years and produces approximately 500,000 metric tonnes of high-quality coal each year.During the summer of 2010, Quinsam achieved a milestone of 10 million tonnes of coal produced and sold since the mine opened. Quinsam’s reserve base of more than 40 million tonnes serves to support our commitment to sustainable long term growth.We employ around 75 people directly at Quinsam — all of whom live in the Campbell River/Mid-Island region. We are proud of our skilled workforce and extremely low employee turnover. Our payroll alone contributes more than $14 million to the regional economy. We spend around $25 million per year on goods and services, of which $10 million or more is spent locally on more than 100 local suppliers and contractors.

We take our responsibility for safeguarding all environmental aspects of mining very seriously. At Quinsam, we maintain an extensive network of sampling stations to ensure the quality of water on the site. We also regularly check the Quinsam River system and surrounding lakes. An Environmental Technical Review Committee composed of representatives from the Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Energy, Mines and Natural Gas, Environment Canada, Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the City of Campbell River review environmental and operational monitoring results on a regular basis. In addition, Quinsam works closely with many other stakeholders to further ensure environmental transparency and compliance.