The Vancouver Sun reports in its Thursday edition that the B.C. government faces a big shortfall in the costs of cleaning up mines when they close. The Sun's Gordon Hoekstra writes that B.C. law requires mines to post security to cover the costs of reclamation and often continuing treatment of tailings pond water when mines close. An Auditor-General's report released earlier this month, however, said there is a $1.2-billion shortfall in funding. Imperial Metals, whose Mount Polley mine's dam failed in 2014, has a $10.5-million underfunded liability on total reclamation costs of $29.5-million. Peace River Coal has a $67-million underfunded liability on its Trend mine, and Thompson Creek Metals has a $29.2-million underfunded liability on its Endako mine. The breakdown shows some companies have provided financial security for the total estimated cost of reclamation. Among those are Taseko's operating Gibraltar gold and copper mine in the Interior, Goldcorp.'s shuttered Equity silver mine in northwest B.C., and AuRico's Kemess South gold and copper mine in Northern B.C. When A-G Carol Bellringer released her report earlier in May, she noted that mining companies are vulnerable to boom-and-bust cycles.