While all terribly slow everything moving in the right direction.

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https://www.saultstar.com/news/local-news/deal-inked-to-plan-north-south-road-to-ring-of-fire

Deal inked to plan north-south road to Ring of Fire

Elaine Della-Mattia
More from Elaine Della-Mattia

Published on: March 3, 2020 | Last Updated: March 3, 2020 3:40 PM EST

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, right, Chief Cornelius Wabasse, Webequie First Nation, left, and Chief Bruce Achneepineskum, Marten Falls First Nation, centre, give each other gifts after their signed agreement regarding the ring of fire in Northern Ontario at the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada's annual convention in Toronto on Monday, March 2, 2020. Nathan Denette / The Canadian Press

The Ontario government has announced that it has reached an agreement with Marten Falls First Nation and Webequie First Nation to plan and developed a Northern Road link that will provide year-round access to the Ring of Fire development.

And that’s good news, said Noront Resources CEO Alan Coutts.

“I’m very pleased,” Coutts said. “It’s the right model to have the First Nations with the traditional land use in the area lead that development.”

The agreement will allow the parties to move forward to the advance planning of critical road infrastructure that would provide reliable, all-season road access to potential mine sites and connect First Nation communities to Ontario’s provincial highway network, the Ontario government states.

Coutts said Noront is “thrilled that the parties will come together to develop the model and work together. We’ll be very supportive in any way we can.”

It’s expected that the north-south all-season road project would also improve access to health and social services and improve infrastructure such as high-speed internet and reliable cellular service, for the First Nations and nearby communities.

Noront Resources will not be involved in the road work in any way. The permitting process, which began two years ago, has been led by the First Nation communities, with the financial support of the province.

“This is the last piece of the road that has to get assessed. There will be a complete network from Webequie down to the rail line that will be under an environmental assessment,” Coutts said.

Noront Resources has provided its early work to the consortiums to move the project forward.

It’s anticipated that the three environmental assessments – different legs of the roads that need to be developed – will take about two years to complete before any construction begins.

The Northern Road Link would connect to the proposed Marten Falls Community Access Road at the south end and the proposed Webequie Supply Road at the north end.

Both First Nation communities said they want to ensure all regulatory requirements are met to fulfill their role as environmental stewards.

Coutts said that at the outset of the project the provincial government wanted Noront to establish a model for the road but as talks began, the First Nation communities said they wanted to establish the model and lead the process so Noront agreed and backed away.

As a result of the change, Noront needs to modify its description of the project to exclude the road from its permitting process, he said in a telephone interview with The Sault Star from the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada convention.

Marten Falls First Nation Chief Bruce Achneepineskum said in a press release the community takes its decisions seriously. “We are moving ahead with this agreement so all communities in the region can connect to the next phase, which is to secure and bring good-paying jobs in mining, construction and other skilled trades to our communities.”

Webequie First Nation Chief Cornelius Wabasse agreed.

“We believe that road development will help bring prosperity to communities across the region and better infrastructure both on and off reserve.”

He said while the road will impact traditional territories, he believes it is a positive step forward to unlocking new opportunities that will benefit surrounding First Nation communities.

Coutts said while the environmental assessment processes continue, Noront is in the midst of other aspects of the project.
It is updating, refreshing and adding new concepts to the feasibility study of the nickel project in the Eagle’s Nest development area.

It is also beginning a preliminary economic analysis with mining the Black Bird chromite mine site and the ferrochrome processing facility.

It is also continuing with its exploration activities in the area, he said.

“We have lots of commodities in demand and we are eager to find more,” Coutts said.

Noront will also be conducting more information sessions with specific interest groups once the preliminary analysis and the design and engineering work on the proposed ferrochrome facility is completed.

“Once we have that design and preliminary testing work, and all the information about the products we will be making and the off gases we can expect, then we’ll have that information we can share with the community and re-engage with the community so that they can make an informed decision,” Coutts said.

Coutts said Noront is also looking for the federal government to play a significant role in the development, to help with infrastructure, road construction access and improvements to those who live there.

Discussions between the provincial and federal government are ongoing, he said.

“We really see the need for both governments to play roles here and we’re encouraged by the discussions on how each government, with the First Nations, can make this project a reality,” he said.

The announcement about the agreement for the road permit was made at the Prospectors and Developers Conference (PDAC) in Toronto.