A British
The Ktunaxa First Nation, the first group outside Alberta to ask for
"Due to the location, size and lifespan of the proposed project, the (Ktunaxa) consider that it will likely cause significant adverse impacts on the Ktunaxa Nation’s Indigenous rights and interests," says the letter written to federal Environment Minister
But the Ktunaxa say those documents gloss over the fact that
"The potential for the project to contribute to regional cumulative effects is therefore also a deep concern," the letter states.
The letter points out the mine comes suspiciously close to the production threshold that would automatically trigger a federal review.
"This raises the prospect that the project description has been tailored specifically to avoid a federal (assessment)."
The Ktunaxa say their experience in the federal-provincial review of Benga Mining's
"Without a federal environmental assessment, the Alberta government will not conduct any, much less meaningful and legally sufficient, consultation with the (Ktunaxa) to address and accommodate for the Project’s impacts," the letter says.
The Alberta government has announced plans for a series of five regional meetings with
The letter says Ktunaxa people fear losing that land for treaty-guaranteed traditional purposes including hunting, gathering, collecting medicines, ceremonies and cultural continuity.
"These effects will be compounded by the cumulative disturbance to the regional landscape," they write.
The Ktunaxa are only the latest group to request
Montem has stated in investor materials that the federal assessment agency has already ruled that federal participation isn't required.
However, an email from the
"The Minister of Environment and Climate Change (has) the authority to designate the project if, in the Minister’s opinion, the carrying out of project activities may cause adverse environmental effects or public concerns related to those effects warrant the designation," the email says.
Wilkinson has until
This report by
— Follow
© 2021 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved., source