Archive | Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas

First Nation and gold junior miner set the ground rules for exploration – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – July 29, 2021)

July 30, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications, Gold and Silver, Junior Exploration Sector, Ontario Mining

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

First Mining inks exploration agreement with Animakee Wa Zhing #37 on drill program near Sioux Narrows

A Vancouver mine gold developer has signed a mineral exploration agreement with a northwestern Ontario First Nation.

First Mining Gold entered into the agreement with Animakee Wa Zhing #37 First Nation (AWZ 37) with an upcoming drilling program scheduled at the company’s Cameron Gold Project, just east of Sioux Narrows and 80 kilometres southeast of Kenora.

The 528-square-kilometre property is within the traditional territory of AWZ 37. The agreement between the company and the community sets out the framework for communication and cooperation for exploration activities that could involve hauling away an old ore pile on the property for processing elsewhere. Continue Reading →

Cobalt company collaborates with Timiskaming First Nation on medicinal, edible plant study – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – July 28, 2021)

July 30, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications, Cobalt Town, Cobalt, Critical, Strategic and Rare Earth Minerals and Metals, Ontario Mining

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

First Cobalt partners on Indigenous community initiative to assess long-term impacts of industrial contamination on wild plants

The Toronto mining company that’s overhauling a metals refinery outside the town of Cobalt has launched a unique environmental and community initiative with an area First Nation.

First Cobalt is working with Timiskaming First Nation on a two-year study to assess the historic impact of settlement, logging, mining and industrial processes on the ecosystem in the former Cobalt mining district.

Specifically, this tag-team study is examining the long-term impact on medicinal plants and mushrooms in this area of the Timiskaming region. Continue Reading →

Ancient Sites, Sacred Snake Raise Risks for Australian Resources – by James Thornhill (Bloomberg News – July 29, 2021)

July 30, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Australia/New Caledonia/Papua New Guinea Mining, International Media Resource Articles, Rio Tinto

https://ampvideo.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — Sacred sites, endangered sawfish and mythical rainbow serpents are the latest challenges confronting commodities powerhouse Australia as the nation’s top mining companies meet for their biggest annual conference.

Since the destruction last year by Rio Tinto Group of a 46,000-year-old Aboriginal rock shelter at Juukan Gorge, the industry has been scrambling to deal with a backlash over heritage protection and environmental issues.

A national enquiry into the incident and new laws being drafted by the Western Australia government could have an impact on some A$18 billion ($13 billion) in projects planned by mining giants operating in the Pilbara, the nation’s iron-ore heartland, as well as other resources projects. Continue Reading →

BHP beats Forrest in takeover battle for prized nickel project – by Brad Thompson (Australian Financial Review – July 27, 2021)

July 28, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Australia/New Caledonia/Papua New Guinea Mining, Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles, BHP Billiton, International Media Resource Articles, Nickel, Ontario Mining, Ontario’s Ring of Fire Mineral Discovery

https://www.afr.com/

BHP has made a sensational bid to snatch a high-grade nickel project in Canada from the clutches of Andrew Forrest in another sign of how determined it is to secure a future in battery metals.

The BHP bid for Noront Resources unveiled on Tuesday night trumps a takeover offer lobbed by Dr Forrest’s privately-owned Wyloo Metals in May.

How Dr Forrest will react to the BHP raising the takeover stakes by a substantial premium remains unclear, with Wyloo controlling about 37 per cent of Noront stock. Continue Reading →

‘Inexplicably frozen’: Judge quashes Ottawa’s Coalspur order as it failed to consult with Ermineskin Cree Nation – by Kelsey Rolfe (Financial Post – July 24, 2021)

July 26, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Canada Mining, Canadian Media Resource Articles, Coal

https://financialpost.com/

Comes just weeks after a federal policy statement on thermal coal all but sent Coalspur’s Vista expansion up in smoke

Coalspur Mines Ltd.’s controversial Vista mine expansion project is no longer subject to the federal impact assessment process, a federal judge ruled this week.

The Federal Court ruling quashed a June 2020 designation order from Environment and Climate Change Minister Jonathan Wilkinson that subjected both Vista’s proposed open-pit expansion and underground test mine to review by the federal impact assessment agency.

It found the minister had failed to consult the Ermineskin Cree Nation, which has an impact benefit agreement with Coalspur, and instead only consulted Indigenous communities who sought the designation order before issuing his decision. Continue Reading →

BHP pulls out in front as Rio Tinto flounders – by Rachael Knowles (National Indigenous Times – July 22, 2021)

July 23, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Australia/New Caledonia/Papua New Guinea Mining, BHP Billiton, International Media Resource Articles, Iron Ore, Rio Tinto

HOME

BHP is leading the pack in iron ore mining as its competitor Rio Tinto continues to reel from fractured relationships with Traditional Owners in Western Australia’s Pilbara region.

Rio Tinto has seen a steep decline in their iron ore shipments from the Pilbara, with the mining giant reportedly having shipped 76.3 million tonnes in the June quarter, 12 per cent less than the same period in 2020.

The miner also reported total production was down 5 per cent for the first half of this year. With Rio Tinto behind the eight ball, BHP reported their sellings at $US158.15 a tonne in the first half of the year, ahead of Rio Tinto’s $US154.90 a tonne. Continue Reading →

Northeast gold junior miner signs exploration agreement with First Nations – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – July 20, 2021)

July 21, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications, Gold and Silver, Kirkland Lake, Ontario Mining

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Gatling Exploration strikes partnership with Matachewan, Wahgoshig First Nations

A gold exploration company in the Kirkland Lake area has inked an exploration agreement with Matachewan and Wahgoshig First Nations.

Vancouver-based Gatling Exploration is working a gold property known as the Larder Project, 35 kilometres east of Kirkland Lake. The agreement sets out a framework for communication and a working relationship between the company and the First Nations.

One objective of this deal is to identify opportunities for Indigenous-owned businesses and members to participate in the company’s exploration activities, which may include training. Continue Reading →

Natural gas firms, Nisga’a Nation unite on $55-billion venture in B.C. – by Brent Jang (Globe and Mail – July 19, 2021)

July 20, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Canadian Media Resource Articles, Oil and Gas Sector-Politics and Image

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Seven natural gas producers have teamed up with the Nisga’a Nation to submit a plan to regulators for approval to build a $55-billion energy megaproject in British Columbia, saying they have learned valuable lessons from other initiatives that have failed to materialize over the past decade.

Calgary-based Birchcliff Energy Ltd. is leading the group of producers known as Rockies LNG, which has enlisted Houston-based Western LNG LLC to help carry out plans to construct the B.C. project to export liquefied natural gas to Asia. Their Ksi Lisims LNG project is named after the Nass River in the Nisga’a language.

Ksi Lisims LNG’s filing to regulators doesn’t provide a detailed breakdown of the costs, but the total price tag includes a wide range of items, including floating modules to supercool natural gas into liquid form. Continue Reading →

The next generation of Canadian nation building – by Deborah Jaremko (Canadian Energy Centre – July 12, 2021)

July 16, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications

Home

Not-for-profit championing Indigenous-led multi-modal resource corridors to advance unity, prosperity and sustainability

Representatives of a Canadian not for profit are ramping up meetings with Indigenous leaders across the country to identify opportunities for First Nations-led development projects in traditional territories.

The C2C2C Unity Corridor Foundation is championing the concept of multi-modal transportation corridors to export Canada’s natural resources under the leadership of Indigenous communities.

“I always say we’re stronger together because I really believe it’s time that we need to lift our communities up. It’s about working together and bringing Indigenous people to the forefront,” says C2C2C director Chris Sankey, a member and former elected councillor of the Lax Kw’alaams First Nation near Prince Rupert, B.C. Continue Reading →

Who should pay when projects fail after Indigenous rights claims? – by Shiri Pasternak (Globe and Mail – July 14, 2021)

July 14, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Canadian Media Resource Articles, Mining Conflict and Opposition, Ontario Mining

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Shiri Pasternak is a professor of criminology at Toronto’s X University. She has changed this affiliation in solidarity with Indigenous faculty because of the legacy of the institution’s namesake in the residential school system.

In early July, Foxgate Developments Inc. announced that it was shutting down construction at the 1492 Land Back Lane camp on reclaimed Six Nations land in Ontario. The site of the proposed housing subdivision called McKenzie Meadows had been permanently occupied by community members since last summer.

But unfinished business remains. Foxgate wants someone to pay for their losses – specifically, $200-million in damages from the Ontario and federal governments, the Ontario Provincial Police, and others for neglecting to remove the occupation.

They also want governments to affirm that title to the lands is legally held by Foxgate and not subject to a land claim by the Six Nations. Continue Reading →

Rare earths are now being mined in Canada – by Shane Lasley (North of 60 Mining News – July 9, 2021)

July 13, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Canada Mining – North of 60, Cobalt, Critical, Strategic and Rare Earth Minerals and Metals, International Media Resource Articles

https://www.miningnewsnorth.com/

On June 28, First Nations mining contractor Nahanni Construction Ltd. dug a scoop of ore from the North T open pit at Vital Metals Ltd.’s Nechalacho project in Northwest Territories that marked a momentous milestone – Canada is now a rare earths-producing nation.

This first REE ore mined at Nechalacho comes just two years after Australia-based Vital came up with a unique plan to take advantage of relatively small but high-grade mineralization coming to the surface at the project to rapidly produce the rare earths widely used in today’s high-tech devices.

North T has 101,000 metric tons of resources averaging 9.01% total rare earth oxides, compared to other global deposits that tend to average around 1% TREO or less. The high-grade North T ore being mined by Nahanni Construction will be further upgraded with an ore sorter delivered to Nechalacho this spring. Continue Reading →

Greenland’s Inuit to use membership of Arctic commerce group to push pro-mining message – by Kevin McGwin (Nunatsiaq News – July 8, 2021)

July 13, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Canada Mining – North of 60, Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications

Homepage

A group representing Greenland Inuit has joined the Arctic Economic Council separately from its parent organization, as Greenland seeks to address concerns that political opposition to mining radioactive minerals will hobble the development of other mining efforts. The country is hoping to grow its mining sector in hopes that it could supplement its fishing industry as a source of exports.

“Greenland, like other Arctic communities, is in an urgent need for diversifying its economic activities,” said Kuupik Kleist, an ICC-Greenland representative. “We are almost completely dependent on the export of fish, which makes the economy fragile and pushes the limits of resources.”

Founded in 2014, the Arctic Economic Council seeks to promote business opportunities in the region. Continue Reading →

Legal battle brewing in northern Ontario over the protection of Indigenous sacred areas, mining rights – by Logan Turner (CBC News Thunder Bay – July 3, 2021)

July 5, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Canadian Media Resource Articles, Gold and Silver, Mining Conflict and Opposition, Ontario Mining

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/

Province, prospectors argue First Nation didn’t fully participate in consultations

As the mining industry heats up in northwestern Ontario, a First Nation in Treaty 9 territory has applied for an injunction to stop mineral exploration and protect a sacred area within their traditional territory.

It’s a case that some say would set a precedent in Canada, establishing the inherent and treaty right of First Nations to protect sacred areas.

Ginoogaming First Nation considers Wiisinin Zaahgi’igan, an area of land roughly 360 square kilometres in size located about 300 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay, its “breadbasket, its church, its heartland, its graveyard and its hospital,” according to documents filed by their lawyers. Continue Reading →

Neglected Ring of Fire-area community taking Ottawa to court over 20-year boil water advisory – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – June 29, 2021)

June 29, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Aboriginal and Inuit Non-Mining Issues, Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications, Ontario’s Ring of Fire Mineral Discovery

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Road proponent Marten Falls First Nation joins national class action lawsuit over lack of potable water, calls for action on housing crisis

A First Nation community supporter of mining development in the Ring of Fire still has to boil its drinking water after two decades.

Marten Falls First Nation is joining a national class-action lawsuit against the federal government led by Olthuis, Kleer, Townshend LLP (OKT) and McCarthy Tétrault LLP.

In a June 29 news release, Marten Falls said despite its members living in mineral-rich lands coveted by mining companies, members in the community of 250 still live in poverty; dealing with homelessness or overcrowded housing conditions, suffering from inadequate fire protection, enduring challenges associated with the water treatment plant, and a boil water advisory that’s lasted for more than 20 years. Continue Reading →

NEWS RELEASE: Marten Falls First Nation Joins Class Action Litigation on Drinking Water Advisory and calls on the Government of Canada for Critical Housing and Infrastructure Appropriations (Martin Falls First Nation – June 29, 2021)

June 29, 2021 in Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas, Ontario’s Ring of Fire Mineral Discovery

THUNDER BAY, ON, June 29, 2021 /CNW/ – Marten Falls First Nation has agreed to join the class-action litigation on drinking water advisories in First Nation communities, which will be led by Olthuis, Kleer, Townshend (OKT) LLP and McCarthy Tétrault LLP. Marten Falls has decided to participate in this class-action lawsuit because it has been under a boil water advisory for over 20 years. The lack of potable water in the community has resulted in illness, an unnecessary loss of opportunities amongst community members, and a burdensome distribution process.

The administration of clean drinking water to community members has been onerous. Bottled water is flown into the community and distributed to community members at the airport. Marten Falls is responsible for paying the upfront costs of these water resources and their transportation, which can cost up to $40,000 per month.

Although the federal government reimburses Marten Falls for these expenses, the cost of buying and transporting water puts a significant strain on the community’s limited financial resources. The reimbursement process is also slow and partial since the community shares water with non-band members in the community like teachers, contractors, and guest workers who are not covered. To put this into perspective, from 2014-2015, Marten Falls had to wait an entire fiscal year to be reimbursed for its bottled water. Continue Reading →