Ore is extracted via a blast hole process and moved via a series of scoop-trams and underground dump trucks to one of 3rockbreakers, either on the surface,at a 400 or 1170meter level.

By the time the runoff reaches the natural watershed system the cyanide content is drastically reduced and poses no environmental or safety hazard.

[3] Due to its remote nature (approximately 197 km from the nearest town, Pickle Lake, Ontario) safety is a major priority.

[4] An air ambulance may take upwards of 2 or more hours to transport an injured worker to Thunder Bay, due to this time factor and the general health of the 300-500 workers at the site an Occupational Health Nurse and an Occupational Medicine Physician Assistant is on site and trained in the treatment of any foreseen incident, such as the administration of sodium thiosulfate and hydroxocobalamin in the event of cyanide poisoning.

This is in contrast to seasonal jobs in logging, oil drilling and mineral exploration where the rotations have longer "in" times but only run for part of the year.

Due to the remote nature of the area any vehicles coming to the mine are required to contact a member of the security team before leaving Pickle Lake and embarking onto the Northern Ontario Resource Trail.

If a traveller has been out on the road for an unusual amount of time (generally 3 hours during the summer months) and cannot be reached by radio it is assumed they have encountered difficulty and a team is sent out to find them.