Ring of Fire cumulative effects being ignored: expert

Academic experts and environmentalists warn that ongoing environmental studies of two proposed Ring of Fire mines will not address the environmental and social effects on the region.

Professor Robert Gibson, an environmental assessment expert at the University of Waterloo, said that looking at a major regional development such as the Ring of Fire one project at a time is not an effective or efficient way to identify the overall cumulative effects.

The comments come as Noront Resources’ proposed Eagles Nest mine starts its environmental assessment (EA) process. Meanwhile, a similar EA for another development in the Ring of Fire – Cliff’s Resources chromite mine – came under criticism from local First Nation leaders earlier this month.

Both projects, besides the proposed mines, also involve transportation and power infrastructure to be built in the Ring of Fire region. Meanwhile several more mine proposals in the region are anticipated, each with its own additional requirements.

The project-by-project approach would fail to consider how the various roads, railways and power projects should be built to serve the whole region and its communities, Gibson said.
But he added there is nothing stopping the federal and provincial governments from setting up a planning process to examine cumulative effects and regional transportation and power options.

Gibson’s comments were echoed by Ramsay Hart of Mining Watch Canada. Hart said his organization has been calling for a regional environmental assessment for the entire Ring of Fire development to examine the “big picture” issues of multiple projects moving forward over the next decade.

“A regional approach would take a little bit of the burden off of the first projects that step up to the review process,” Hart said.

The EAs for both Cliffs and Noront are comprehensive study assessments. The EAs can be upgraded to an intensive Joint Review Panel (JRP) assessment if federal environment minister Peter Kent decides there are “significant adverse environmental effects” and “major public concerns.”

Matawa First Nations filed a judicial review Nov. 7 calling on the federal government to put the Cliffs project through a JRP. The tribal council represents several First Nations close to the Ring of Fire.

Matawa’s legal counsel said it “certainly seems likely” the chiefs will file a judicial review of the Noront EA as well.

Judith Rae, a lawyer with Olthius Kleer Townshend, said the JRP process would let all partners – including the federal and provincial governments – to create a process to deal with the effects of multiple projects in the region.

“Certainly a joint review panel is able to bring assessments together in a more flexible way,” Rae said. “You could have overlapping studies, overlapping timelines and overlapping panel members. That’s the kind of thing Matawa is calling for.”

Besides the environmental effects of the two mines, infrastructure needs are also being assessed in isolation of each other. Cliffs has proposed building an all-weather road south from the Ring of Fire region to Nakina, while Noront has proposed building an all weather road west from Webequie Junction to Pickle Lake.