A proposed open-pit gold and copper mine could be given the go-ahead as early as Friday, despite opposition from First Nations and findings by a federal review panel that it would pose significant harm to the environment.
The Taseko Mines Prosperity project slated for the Nemiah Valley, about 160 km southwest of Williams Lake in British Columbia, would span 35 square km and include an access road, a mill, and 125-km-long power transmission line.
The $800 million project would drain pristine Fish Lake—renowned for its rainbow trout, use Little Fish Lake and Fish Creek as tailings ponds, and contaminate other nearby bodies of water.
The project has already passed a provincial environmental assessment and now hinges on the federal government’s decision.
Many politicians, businesses, and laid off mill workers in the Williams Lake area support the project, which would bring hundreds of much-needed jobs to a region impacted by the fallout from the pine beetle infestation that caused widespread damage to forests.
But Chief Joe Alphonse of the Tsilhqot’in First Nation says the mine, which would be “right in our back yard,” is unacceptable to the Tsilhqot’in.
Alphonse says the band has multiple concerns around the project, in particular the destruction of Fish Lake and potential harm to the Chilcotin Lake sockeye salmon run, on which the band depends.
Besides being an abundant source of trout and one of the top ten fishing lakes in B.C., he says Fish Lake has for centuries been of profound cultural and spiritual significance to the Tsilhqot’in.
“It would be a huge loss to our people, our way of life.”
The provincial environmental assessment process found that although the project would have negative environmental effects, the mine was justified on account of the economic benefits it would generate and because the lake and the fishery would be replaced.
But replacing Fish Lake is easier said than done, says Alphonse.
“You can’t just create that type of lake that’s taken thousands and thousands of years to create that would sustain such a large number of lake trout. Just digging a hole in the ground and filling it with water—what they plan on proposing—is not a replacement at all as far as we’re concerned.”
B.C. business groups believe the mine will be a boon to the province. Jock Finlayson of the BC Business Council says the project is needed given the province’s declining trade balance and weak forestry sector.
“Prosperity is one of the most significant new anchors of economic development available to the province at this time. Federal government approval of Prosperity will be a significant boost for BC’s future prospects.”
An independent review panel appointed by Environment Minister Jim Prentice in 2009 found that Prosperity would have irreversible adverse impacts on the local ecosystem and First Nations culture.
The panel concluded that the project “would result in significant adverse environmental effects on fish and fish habitat, on navigation, on the current use of lands and resources for traditional purposes by First Nations and on cultural heritage, and on certain potential or established Aboriginal rights or title.”
The panel said the project would also have a negative impact on grizzly bears and that a replacement lake was “unlikely” to be viable. Wildlife including grizzly, mule deer, and moose depend on Fish Lake.
Canada is one of a few countries that allow using natural bodies of water as tailings ponds. Since the government approved the destruction of two Newfoundland lakes in 2006, mining companies have applied to use 13 lakes as dump sites.
At a press conference in Ottawa on Sept. 2, several national and regional First Nations chiefs called on the federal cabinet to reject Taseko’s proposal. Grand Chief Stewart Phillip of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs warned that approving Prosperity “would serve as a catalyst and trigger a volatile and protracted confrontation.”
The Assembly of First Nations and a number of other native groups are backing the Tsilhqot’in in their opposition to the project.
“It’s of interest to every First Nation in Canada,” says Alphonse.
“If they push this mine through then that would indicate that there’s no treaty and there’s no aboriginal right and title case anywhere that would protect us. If they’re not going to recognize our rights and our title to the land then what hope is there for any other First Nation in B.C. or across Canada?”
The chiefs fear that despite the panel’s findings, Ottawa intends to grant approval, given that Taseko has been assuring its investors that the mine will proceed. Taseko spokesman Brian Battison did not return calls seeking comment.
The Council of Canadians and MiningWatch Canada have also called on Ottawa to reject the proposal, and on Tuesday the groups delivered a petition to the government with more than 10,000 signatures.
“Lakes and rivers should not be used as private garbage dumps for mining companies,” council chair Maude Barlow said in a press release.
Barlow said if the project gets the green light, it will face “huge resistance in British Columbia and across Canada.”
Alphonse says that while frustrations run high among the Tsilhqot’in and some have threatened to defend their lands with firearms, he doesn’t endorse violence. But if the project is approved, the band will challenge it in court.
“We have to do what we feel is best for our people and protect our interests,” he says.
