Canadian First Nation, with rare sway over mining, puts Newmont on notice

Giga Metals

29/04/2021 11:00

By Jeff Lewis
    TORONTO, April 29 (Reuters) - A First Nation group in
Canada's British Columbia province has put top gold miner
Newmont Corp  NEM.N  on notice that it is unlikely to gain
buy-in for a gold and copper project, amid concern that mining
will encroach on a local town.  
    The pushback by the Tahltan First Nation carries extra
weight due to the group's outsized influence in its territory,
in contrast to similar groups who oppose mining elsewhere. 
    That authority may complicate efforts by U.S.-based Newmont
to develop its early-stage Tatogga project, acquired in March in
a $311 million buyout of GT Gold. 
    "It's going to be a sensitive discussion with the nation,"
Tahltan Central Government President Chad Day told Reuters. 
    Residents of nearby Iskut, about 1,600 kilometers north of
Vancouver, worry the Newmont project will limit their ability to
hunt caribou and bring more industry to an area that already
includes Newcrest Mining's  NCM.AX  Red Chris copper and gold
mine.
    The Tahltan nation has unique powers due to a combination of
land rights, legal clout, financial heft and the ability to
conduct their own economic and environmental assessments on
projects in their territory.
    Miners from Teck  TECKb.TO  to Rio Tinto  RIO.AX   RIO.L 
have signed consent agreements with the nation, whose business
arm spans aviation to mining. 
    "There’s no doubt that they have a very powerful say in
whether or not projects proceed in their territory," said Merle
Alexander, principal at with the indigenous law group at Miller
Titerle and a hereditary chief of the Kitasoo Xai’xais First
Nation. 
    Tahltan territory covers about 11% of the Pacific province
and sits on an estimated 50.6 million ounces of gold  XAU=  and
12.5 billion pounds of copper  CMCU3 , according to data mapping
provider DigiGeoData.
    Like some other British Columbian groups, the Tahltan Nation
never ceded territory to European settlers, in contrast to
groups elsewhere who ended up relinquishing title to their lands
through treaties. 
    Aboriginal claims to traditional territories in British
Columbia were bolstered by a landmark 2014 Supreme Court ruling.
    Newmont owns stakes in other undeveloped mineral deposits in
Tahltan territory, which remain years from development. 
    "Clearly, if the community does not want the resource
development, we're not going to be there," Newmont spokesman
Nick Cotts said, adding the U.S. miner is committed to working
with the Tahltan to address concerns.
    
    NO 'CULTURAL SACRIFICES'
    The Tahltan nation has not shied away from using its power
in the past.
    In 2012, the nation opposed a coalbed methane project
proposed by oil major Royal Dutch Shell  RDSa.L , prompting the
company to relinquish land tenures. 
    Three years later, Fortune Minerals  FT.TO  sold coal leases
in the territory, after the group threatened the miner with
expulsion. 
    Such clout is in sharp contrast to the experience of
indigenous groups elsewhere. Last year, Rio Tinto destroyed
Aboriginal cave sites, with the affected indigenous population
having little recourse to block it.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2DS2B2     
    To be sure, the nation, who historically mined obsidian for
weaponry and tools, support some mining provided it is on their
terms. 
    Exploration spending last year in the territory topped C$200
million ($162.40 million) with production from three active
mines valued at more than C$1.2 billion, according to the
nation. Many Tahltan work in the industry and the nation has
revenue-sharing agreements with the government for projects.
    That economic heft makes it difficult for other indigenous
groups to emulate Tahltan's assertive approach to development,
lawyers and First Nation leaders said. 
    "We don't have to make huge cultural sacrifices to have a
thriving economic environment in our territory," Day said.
    Last month the nation vowed "all actions necessary" to stop
exploration by junior miner Doubleview Gold Corp  DBG.V  on
ancestral lands.
    The dispute reflects long-standing grievances with the
provincial government which grants mineral claims over the
internet.     
    Legal experts said that approach is inconsistent with
principles around getting First Nations consent. A similar
approach in Yukon was found to breach the government's legal
duty to consult indigenous groups.
    British Columbia consults at a later stage of mine
development, a spokesman for the provincial mines minister said.
    Doubleview says it has valid permits but takes local
concerns seriously. A study it commissioned found exploration
would occur in an area of "low archaeological potential." 
    Day said the Tahltan are crafting a land-use plan to
prohibit exploration in ecologically and culturally sensitive
areas, giving the nation greater control over who can stake
mineral claims and where.
    "All of those resources belong to Tahltan," said elder Allen
Edzerza, who leads efforts by the BC First Nations Energy and
Mining Council advocacy group to reform the province's mining
laws. 
    "It’s not (the province's) right to give those away.”
 ($1 = 1.2315 Canadian dollars)

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Canada aboriginal court win sparks new pipeline questions    https://www.reuters.com/article/canada-courts-aboriginal-idINL2N0P70QR20140626
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 (Reporting by Jeff Lewis in Toronto
Editing by Matthew Lewis)
 ((Jeff.Lewis@thomsonreuters.com; +1 647 200 7236))