Community Involvement in Mine Remediation: Insights from Northwest Territories, Canada

Abstract

Across Canada and the Northwest Territories (NWT), abandoned mines have held their place as literal and figurative memories of historical mining malpractices, with mine closure and remediation in Northern areas gaining traction in Canada to bring environmental, economic, and social restitution from years of neglect and land misuse. However, the focus on technical aspects of mine closure have historically limited the extent to which local engagement is considered in the planning phases of mine closure and remediation. This thesis examines the characteristics of good practices for Northern community engagement in mine remediation, and, specifically, how the Giant Mine Remediation Project (GMRP) in Yellowknife, NWT has employed community engagement throughout the planning stages. Methods included a review of project remediation documents, informed by good-practice principles for public and Indigenous engagement. Results of this study indicate that the GMRP largely considers public engagement within its planning stages. However, fair and open dialogue, along with adequate and accessible information between Developer and the public were least evident. Further, capacity building for Indigenous Peoples and communities lacked fulsome consideration specifically in planning documents. The conclusions support similar findings that Indigenous communities require greater financial resources to build capacity and meaningful incorporation of traditional knowledge. Indicators of success and public oversight committees may provide greater opportunity to strengthen local knowledge and participation in the remediation phase of the mine cycle. While this project is limited in scope, it is hoped these findings will aid in enhancing the effectiveness of community engagement in Northern mine remediation and Indigenous participation, while demonstrating the success that the regulatory regime in the NWT and Northern Canada has in developing greater public participation.