The Athabasca Regional Government is considering its options in the wake of a recent court decision.
Last week, the Federal Court of Appeal dismissed an application by the communities in Saskatchewan’s far north to have a review launched into the granting of a licence for the McClean Lake uranium mine.
The regional government said it felt the duty to consult process was not adequately followed in the method used to grant the licence.
Hearings on the licence took place in 2009.
ARG lawyer Bruce Slusar says the ruling suggests that when northern communities are dealing with existing mining operations, they need to come up with fresh evidence of how the operation is affecting their Aboriginal and treaty rights.
He says this is something other groups should take note of:
“And so, what this now suggests is that where we’re dealing with an existing mining operation, that if we’re going to trigger a fresh duty to consult, First Nations require a fresh set of activities and fresh evidence of potential new impacts to their treaty and Aboriginal rights.”
Slusar says if this is the case, it may put a different spin on how the duty to consult process has generally been interpreted.
He says they may appeal the decision, but it is too soon to say for sure.