The B.C. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the province’s mining permit system is unconstitutional.
The province’s current system, at issue in the case, automatically grants mineral claims to industry applicants who submit a request through a government website.
Tuesday’s ruling found that process violates First Nations rights.
It ordered B.C. to replace the system with one that ensures input and consultation with Indigenous communities on whose territories mining permits are granted.
Looks like mining will go the same way oil and gas has in BC. The First Nations bands will hold permits hostage until they get a bigger slice of the pie. They even require contractors to have partnerships with a band or a band contractor. The oil and gas contractors are all about having partnerships with bands these days.
I don’t blame the bands. These companies make hand over fist at the highest levels.
I blame the tiny subset of bands who talk about the sanctity of the land and then roll over when there’s cash to be made. Fairy Creek, right?