TIMMINS - Newmont isn’t the “bad actor” that it’s being made out to be.
Wabun Tribal Council executive director Jason Batise reaffirmed his organization’s support that the gold mining company has proven itself as a good corporate citizen and solid First Nations partner in operating its mines in the Timmins and Chapleau area.
Timmins-based Wabun issued a news release last week throwing its support behind Newmont-owned Porcupine Mines in the face of a legal claim filed last November by Takywa Tagamou Nation (TTN).
TTN, an Indigenous community near Cochrane, accuses the company and the Ontario government of failing in its duty to consult with them on a plan to bring the inactive Pamour mine back into production.
TTN wants all permits and approvals for Pamour halted and a joint land-use planning exercise initiated to come up with a more collaborative process of issuing permits.
Batise didn’t directly call TTN out, but said everyone in the northeast benefits when the Porcupine mines are humming.
“While we are disappointed with the TTN action, we respect their autonomy to do what they feel is needed,” said Batise in an emailed statement to Northern Ontario Business. “Importantly, we do disagree with the TTN position that Newmont is a bad actor with regard to (First Nation) engagement. We support Newmont and hope they have success in Timmins.”
Based on years of relationship building through consultation and a decade-old agreement, Wabun said there have been mutual benefits through mining, and the Porcupine operators allowed them to participate in “meaningful ways” through various stages of the mining cycle.
Wabun said they are reliant on the ongoing operation of the mines in the Timmins area just as their neighbouring municipalities would be.
The Wabun communities — namely, Mattagami, Matachewan, Flying Post, Chapleau Ojibwe and Brunswick House — stated last week that development should continue “without delay or interruption” rather than be mired in litigation.
Batise responded on Monday to follow-up questions from Northern Ontario Business.
“It should also be noted that the Newmont operations in Timmins support seven individual First Nations whose communities rely on the continuing operations at the mine and mill site,” he said. “Recall that the Borden Mine in Chapleau, whose ore is shipped to Timmins for processing, is a Newmont property with excellent relationships with the First Nations in that area.”
TTN does not have any partnership agreement with Newmont and according to provincial consultation rules, TTN is considered on a second tier of impacted communities and only requires “low level consultation.”
In court documents, TTN maintains it didn’t learn about Newmont’s restart plans for Pamour until after the province had authorized recommissioning.
TTN deputy chief Derek Archibald has downstream environment concerns about a revived mine and would like to see more tangible benefits for impacted communities.
Both TTN and the Wabun communities contend that the mines in and around the Timmins area, including Pamour, sit within their respective traditional lands. Wabun and Batise didn’t respond to a question if there any issues with TTN on overlapping territorial boundaries.
