The Gitxaala denounce that the mining claims in their traditional territory were granted without consultation or even notice, which violates constitutional obligations towards them and violates the United Nations declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples, which the government of British Columbia adopted. in 2019.
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The Gitxaala First Nation in northwestern British Columbia has presented a one-of-a-kind legal challenge to the province’s mining rights regime, which some critics have likened to a relic from the gold rush era.
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The Gitxaala denounce that the mining claims in their traditional territory were granted without consultation or even notice, which violates constitutional obligations towards them and violates the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which the government of British Columbia adopted in 2019.
“The fact that British Columbia still grants mineral rights with utter disregard for indigenous nations like Gitxaała is a damaging relic of colonialism that has no place today,” hereditary chief Matthew Hill said Tuesday. “We will not allow this to continue in Gitxaała territory and that is why we have launched our case.”
Officials from the British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovations said they could not comment on the court case, but noted that in 2018 and 2019 there had been a discussion with First Nations about possible tenure reform. of minerals.
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The talks identified the need for “additional commitment,” ministry spokeswoman Meghan McRae said in a written statement.
Under British Columbia’s mineral tenure system, an individual or business who has paid a small fee ($ 25 for an individual or $ 500 for a business) to register as a “free miner” can apply for mineral rights to almost all parcels of land. the lands of British Columbia. .
Since 2005, free miners can do it online by selecting plots with a mouse click for $ 1.75 per hectare, which are awarded automatically.
The mineral claim holder has the right to explore for minerals and convert the claim into a lease to extract minerals.
The system has been criticized by First Nations and environmentalists as a relic from a gold rush era and that it does not take into account indigenous, community or private territorial interests and existing land use plans.
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Provinces such as Ontario and Quebec have modernized their mineral tenure systems to take into account other rights and land uses.
Calvin Sandborn, legal director of the University of Victoria Center for Environmental Law, said British Columbia’s mineral tenure regime is based on an outdated presumption that this land was discovered by Europeans, that no one had been here before, and that mineral prospectors have the right to claim what they want in order to develop a frontier society.
“Granting radical powers to reclaim minerals, especially in the internet age, where these things can be collected and archived per bushel, is probably a violation of indigenous rights,” said Sandborn, who along with others has been calling for a reform of the British Columbia Mineral Tenure. system.
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In their petition filed in the British Columbia Supreme Court, the Gitxaala want to revoke several claims of mining rights granted in their traditional territory by the province between 2018 and 2020 and suspension of granting any new mining claims.
Mining rights were granted between 2018 and 2020 over 1,440 hectares on Banks Island, south of the Gitxaala community of Kitkatla and about 100 kilometers south of Prince Rupert.
The holding area is roughly 3-1 / 2 times the size of Stanley Park and the mineral rights would have cost about $ 2,500. The costs to maintain mineral rights increase annually to a maximum of $ 40 per hectare in the fourth year.
The judicial petition indicates that the province did not consult the Gitxaala regarding the granting of mineral possession claims. Banks Island is 1,000 square kilometers, 20 times the size of Bowen Island.
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“Banks Island is known among Gitxaala as its ‘bread basket’ or ‘table’, and its ecosystem is an integral part of the Gitxaala way of life,” the court petition says.
At a news conference Tuesday, Gitxaala Councilor-elect Linda Innes pointed out the recent negative effect of mining on Banks Island, potentially including streams with salmon.
The Yellow Giant gold mine on Banks Island was approved by BC in 2014 and a year later came under provincial and federal scrutiny for spills of mining waste into the environment. The province ordered the mine closed and its owners declared bankruptcy, and the company’s top executives are still facing legal proceedings.
Reacting to Gitxaala’s legal action, Kendra Johnston, president of the Association for Mineral Exploration in BC, noted that acquiring a mineral rights claim is just one step in an extensive process.
For example, mineral exploration companies must complete a detailed “job application notice” that includes government-to-government consultations with indigenous groups who may benefit from or be affected by exploration work, Johnston said.
Reference-vancouversun.com