Spanish Mountain concerns

To whom it may concern,

I am writing to address some concerns that I have about the proposed Spanish Mountain Gold mining Project after reading the project description documents.

There were vague promises made to the Indigenous communities on whose land the project will take place (Williams lake first Nation, Xatsull First Nation, and the Lhtako Dene Nation), to engage “meaningfully” and “deeply” in the Initial Project Description. But what does the project plan to do to go beyond considering opinions from indigenous stakeholders, and move towards seeking their consent? What economic benefits will be shared with the Nations, and how will this be negotiated? How will these actions go beyond performative or tokenizing gestures? There is also a lack of information on how the project might effect the Nation's traditional practices such as hunting, or access to their lands. There are also multiple ecological concerns that don't seem to be sufficiently addressed. For example, the effects of water diversions or erosion into the surrounding rivers and creeks, which house rainbow trout, coho and chinook salmon, and provide spawning habitat. The risk of contamination of hazardous materials into the surrounding waters is mentioned but not sufficiently planned for. How would the Nations be compensated for the potential degradation of the environment?

Sincerely,

Magdalena Catella

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