Matawa tweeted the link below over a week ago ....and I sent it over to a couple of friends to let them know that Noront is not the only one ....suffering..

https://thestarphoenix.com/news/local-news/there-will-be-no-mine-until-our-interests-are-satisfied-investors-frustrated-as-diamond-mine-talks-between-province-first-nation-stall

Well guess what.

I noticed the stock halted this morning and this news came out. The feds had already given their blessing for an approval and the province recently asked for up to 3 months more time..

I was surprised to see this today. Perhaps the CEO of Matawa can post this verdict on his twitter.

https://www.nipawinjournal.com/news/local-news/province-grants-environmental-approval-for-ft-a-la-corne-diamond-mine

The provincial government has signed off on a Saskatoon mining company’s plan to build a diamond mine east of Prince Albert, ending what is believed to be the longest environmental approval process in Saskatchewan history.

The announcement is sure to please Star Diamond Corp. and its investors, many of whom have sunk their savings into the project only to grow increasingly frustrated by delays, a lack of information, and languishing share prices.

It is not, however, likely to please members of nearby James Smith Cree Nation. A consultant hired to speak for the First Nation told the Saskatoon StarPhoenix earlier this month that Star Diamond’s environmental plan was “hopelessly flawed.”

In a statement on Thursday, Environment Minister Dustin Duncan said the $1.4-billion twin-open-pit diamond mine proposal has met government requirements that developments only proceed after “appropriate environmental safeguards” are in place.

“I am confident this project has met these requirements and the conditions of approval will mitigate environmental and community impacts,” Duncan said more than four years after the company submitted its final environmental impact statement.

The announcement on Thursday marks a significant milestone for Star Diamond — formerly known as Shore Gold Inc. — which has been working to build a mine in the kimberlite-rich Fort a la Corne forest since the mid-1990s.

The project is expected to create hundreds of construction jobs, employ about 700 people once it is operational and return about $6 billion in taxes and royalties to the province over its expected lifespan of 34 years.

In a statement, Star Diamond CEO Ken MacNeill said he was “very pleased” that the proposed project has received approval, and that the decision marks a “major milestone” toward the development of a diamond mine in Saskatchewan.

The approval is also good news for Rio Tinto Exploration Canada Ltd., a subsidiary of one of the world’s largest mining firms that has the option to buy up to 60 percent of the project in stages for a total of about $75 million.

In an interview earlier this month, James Smith Cree Nation spokesman Winston McLean suggested the First Nation’s accommodation demands, including access to resource revenues, were not being met and “everyone else (will get) wealthy.”

While revenue-sharing appears to be off the table, the government on Thursday confirmed that accommodations will include reserving a portion of the forest for band members’ use, and funding for various community and stewardship programs.

Once the surface lease is issued, Star Diamond must provide James Smith Cree Nation with a total of $161,250 for each year of the mine’s lifespan — an estimated $5.5 million — to fund various community and environmental programs.

The province on Thursday also confirmed that it will involve the First Nation in environmental monitoring, and enter into “an agreement to provide training, jobs and business opportunities for James Smith Cree Nation and other local communities.”

Star Diamond’s project, currently known as the Star-Orion-South Diamond mine for the properties on which it will be built, was granted federal environmental approval in 2014. Both levels of government must approve the project for it to move forward.

While a green light from the province is not the final step — more permits are required, as well as a plan to finance construction of the mine should it proceed — environmental approval is a major hurdle Star Diamond has now cleared.

In an interview earlier this month, one of the many investors who outlined concerns and frustrations to the Saskatoon StarPhoenix said the provincial government was “holding people’s future in the palm of their hands.”

“Diamond mining is the least caustic and the least impactful to the environment of all mining types out there,” said Thomas Griffith, who claims to own a sizeable stake in the company. “This project should have been approved in four to six months.