bcMetals

Following a Federal Court decision on September 25, 2007, the future of the proposed Red Chris mine - a huge acid-generating mine proposed for north-western British Columbia – has been put in doubt.

The precedent-setting decision upholds the fundamental right of Canadians to be consulted during the environmental assessment of large mines on the comprehensive study list. The Court found that the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act enshrined this right when it was amended in October 2003.

On September 8, 2006, MiningWatch Canada filed a formal complaint with securities regulators in British Columbia and Toronto, charging that bcMetals has misrepresented the risks of its proposed Red Chris Mine in northern British Columbia to its investors. MiningWatch has asked the B.C. Securities Commission to investigate whether bcMetals has acted contrary to the British Columbia Securities Act, its regulations, and national standards on disclosure, by failing to report material information or material changes to investors and securities regulators.

Opposition to the “Free Entry” system of mine claim staking is being challenged across the country by Indigenous people and private property owners.

In southern British Columbia, a “landowners’ rights group” has been formed to take on staking of the mineral rights on their lands by prospectors. (See article in the Tyee.)

The amended Metal Mining Effluent Regulations (MMERs) have been published in the Canada Gazette Part One, and the public comment period has closed. They will become final when published in the Canada Gazette Part Two.

One of the amendments to the MMERs adds two lakes in Newfoundland to Schedule 2, which redefines them as mine waste dumps (for environmentally toxic tailings). Both lakes currently provide habitat for trout and Atlantic salmon as well as otter and other species.