MARKETS

Klappan exploration hits halt

GOVERNMENT officials in British Columbia, Canada, have put the brakes on new coal mining rights i...

Donna Schmidt

The Tahltan Central Council said late Monday that the agreement it came to with the provincial government, called the Klappan Coal Licence Deferral Area Order, allowed time for the two to continue discussions and find a mutual decision for an “acceptable and sustainable future for this important part of British Columbia”.

The KCLDA impacts 62 current coal exploration licenses over an area of about 255,000 hectares in an area known to the tribe as the Sacred Headwaters.

“[I]t holds significant value to the Tahltan people where they continue to hunt, camp teach and carry out other cultural activities,” the group said.

“It also feeds three of the region's major salmon-bearing rivers - the Skeena, Stikine and Nass.”

Existing coal authorizations and tenures are not included in the freeze, TCC said. Included in those projects allowed to continue is the already-approved Fortune Minerals Arctos anthracite project.

“The Tahltan Nation is united in its opposition to development in our Sacred Headwaters,” Tahltan Central Council president Annita McPhee said.

“This agreement gives us some temporary reprieve, and is the first step in long journey towards a protection plan for the Klappan. We will continue to resist any industrial development there like the Arctos project that threatens to destroy our land and culture.”

The hold is not the first victory for the tribe, as the Tahltan Nation has long opposed industrial development in that area of northwestern BC.

Earlier this year, it played a role in an exploratory work idle at the Fortune Minerals Arctos open-cut project, and last year it saw Shell relinquish rights in the region following years of protests.

Tahltan Central Council is the governing body of the Tahltan Nation.

TOPICS:

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining Monthly Intelligence team.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining Monthly Intelligence team.

editions

ESG Mining Company Index: Benchmarking the Future of Sustainable Mining

The ESG Mining Company Index report provides an in-depth evaluation of ESG performance of 61 of the world's largest mining companies. Using a robust framework, it assesses each company across 9 meticulously weighted indicators within 6 essential pillars.

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Exploration Report 2024 (feat. Opaxe data)

A comprehensive review of exploration trends and technologies, highlighting the best intercepts and discoveries and the latest initial resource estimates.

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Future Fleets Report 2024

The report paints a picture of the equipment landscape and includes detailed profiles of mines that are employing these fleets

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Digitalisation Report 2023

An in-depth review of operations that use digitalisation technology to drive improvements across all areas of mining production