By Matteo Cimellaro, Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Mining projects and protected land can co-exist, two provincial environment ministers said at a press conference on Friday after two days of meetings with their counterparts from across the country.
Continue reading Mining and conservation can go hand in hand, environment ministers sayBy Matteo Cimellaro, Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Reconciliation isn’t the only thing threatened when mining exploration companies fail to get consent from Indigenous nations, says one ethical investor.
Provinces — and the junior mining companies that obtain exploration permits connected to a nation’s ancestral territories — ignore consultation with Indigenous Peoples at their own peril, as the oversight can set the stage for future conflict, court challenges and delays, hampering any future economic development before it begins.
Continue reading Mining companies are snapping up claims to develop Indigenous land. But what happens when a nation doesn’t consent?
By Matteo Cimellaro, Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
An online form and $58.75.
That is what it takes to claim a mining stake in the traditional territory of the Gitxaała Nation, according to a written submission to the B.C. Supreme Court. At no point in the process does the mining claim, accessed through a provincial portal, ask the individual or company applying for it to consult with the nation.
For this reason, the Gitxaała Nation is challenging B.C.’s Mineral Tenure Act in a case that will test whether the province’s legal commitment to recognizing the rights of Indigenous Peoples has the teeth to change laws.
Continue reading First Nation launches court challenge testing B.C.’s legal commitment to recognizing Indigenous rights
National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Canada is under increasing pressure to declare a moratorium on seabed mining just as federal leaders are set to host an international marine conservation summit.
More than 700 international scientists and a multitude of environmental organizations are calling on Canada to ban the search for deep-sea minerals in its own waters and show global leadership by joining a chorus of countries, such as France, Germany, Chile and Pacific Island nations, in calling for a mining ban in shared international waters. The country will host the fifth International Marine Protected Area Congress (IMPAC5) starting Friday in Vancouver.
Continue reading Canada under pressure to ban deep-sea mining as global ocean summit starts in Vancouver
By Lawrie Crawford, Yukon News, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Reconciling industrial and environmental interests is a continual problem for the Yukon Environmental and Socio-economic Assessment Board (YESAB).
Projects have quickly become controversial when caribou are involved. BMC Minerals’ Kudz Ze Kayah project affecting the Finlayson herd is now before the courts for judicial review; Western Copper and Gold’s Casino project in Klaza caribou territory is now into its eighth year of assessment; and conditions have been recently imposed on Fireweed Zinc to mitigate effects of their drilling program on the Tay River caribou herd. Conditions for Fireweed’s project in the MacMillan Pass included that “if caribou are observable within one kilometre of active work areas, activities shall cease until the caribou have moved away on their own accord.”
Continue reading Caribou at the crux of culture and industry
