Protestors claim member injured at Mount Polley mine site
VICTORIA — The second anniversary of a mining disaster in British Columbia’s central Interior was marked with a First Nations protest and a pledge from the company that the situation has improved at the Mount Polley mine.
On Aug. 4, 2014, a tailings storage facility burst at the mine, sending 24 million cubic metres of waste and water into nearby lakes and rivers.
Outside the site on Thursday a group, which includes members of the Secwepemc Women’s Warrior Society, protested. They said in a statement that the community is exercising its sovereignty by taking direct action after the B.C. government granted the mine owner Imperial Metals (TSX:Ill) a permit in June to resume full operations.
Kanahus Freedom, a spokeswoman for the warrior society, stated B.C. does not have jurisdiction to grant mining permits to companies “without the free, prior, informed consent of the Secwepemc Tribal Peoples.”