Originally published in the Macdonald-Laurier Institute
If all parties get it right, the Ring of Fire can become a model for Indigenous engagement on resource development for all of Canada, writes Joseph Quesnel.
There is some hopeful movement on the famed Ring of Fire mineral deposit in northwestern Ontario.
The new Ontario government promised to revive the project. There is some national interest in this massive project because of the jobs and economic activity for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities. The federal government also has a role in clarifying treaty issues.
In late February, a proposed provincial environmental assessment process began on a permanent road to the proposed site. The Ontario government has begun collecting input on a potential repeal of the Far North Act – the land use legislation meant to balance protecting the Boreal forest and spurring economic development in the region – in order to cut red tape and regulatory uncertainty.
Scratch that: Feds to rethink Ring of Fire environmental assessment after First Nations criticism
‘There is no access to critical minerals in Canada without Indigenous Peoples being at the table in a decision-making position,’ Federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault said
The power of peat: Canada’s secret weapon against climate change
Scientists call them Canada’s Amazon Rainforest, and they could be at risk. Peatlands are ancient ecosystems that cool the planet by absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, trapping it deep underground. A quarter of peatlands on Earth are found here in Canada, but some are under threat from potential mining developments aimed at creating technology for a greener future.
There will be no environmental shortcuts taken in the Ring of Fire, says federal minister
Facing down governments and industry, this First Nation makes a promise: There’ll be no development in the Ring of Fire without its consent