BURST
A group that represents mineral explorers in B.C. is recommending to the provincial government that “substantive” amendments be made to laws that put into force the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Those laws came into the spotlight recently when the B.C. Court of Appeal overturned a lower-court ruling, finding the province’s automated online mineral claims registry was “inconsistent” with the declaration.
It was considered a big win by First Nations because the B.C. high court had ruled that the province’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People’s Act was legally enforceable.
In a letter sent Tuesday to Premier David Eby, the Association of Mineral Explorers outlined four major changes that include deleting two sections of the Declaration Act — one affirming the declaration to the laws of B.C., and the other that stated there should be no delay in implementing the declaration.
The association is also calling for changes to the law to include consultation and compensation for impacts on the affected public, instead of only with Indigenous peoples.
The industry group also wants a section of the Interpretation Act deleted that stipulated all provincial regulations must be construed as consistent with the Declaration Act.
If the government does not make the changes, it will undermine the mineral exploration and mining sectors in B.C., said the mineral explorers.
Spending on mineral exploration in B.C. hit a high of $740 million in 2022, but dropped to $550 million in 2024. Exploration generates new mines, a sector which has about $18 billion in annual revenues and supports about 35,000 jobs.
“The current pathway government is on has dramatically increased delay and confusion in mineral exploration. Many of our early-stage and smallest members are hit the hardest and are seeing their way of life disappear. Reconciliation cannot work when only a few bear the gains,” said Association of Mineral Explorers president and CEO Todd Stone, who is a former B.C. Liberal cabinet minister.
Eby has already said he intends to amend the Declaration Act — and possibly the Interpretation Act — during the coming legislative session starting Feb. 12.
It is not clear exactly what those changes will be, but the premier has criticized the Appeal Court decision as judicial overreach that could undermine public support for reconciliation with Indigenous people.
“The amendments will make it clear that what we said in the legislature when that (legislation) was introduced, when it was voted on, and when all members of the legislature supported it, remains true today,” said the premier.
“The Declaration Act commitments were government-to-government commitments. They were work that we committed to do in partnership with First Nations governments, and it was not for the courts to take over that work.”
Both the Declaration and Interpretation acts enshrine the principles of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and both were drafted in consultation with First Nations.
Indigenous leaders have warned the government not to water down the legislation, saying it would undermine reconciliation.
With Postmedia files.