Image Credit: KGHM-Ajax

By Chad Klassen

SSN AJAX

Secwepemc chiefs say Abacus can do nothing to change their minds on Ajax

Sep 26, 2019 | 9:26 AM

KAMLOOPS — The decision by Abacus to try and revive the Ajax project isn’t sitting well with Secwepemc leaders.

Skeetchestn Indian Band Chief Ron Ignace says it was “highly presumptuous” for Abacus, which owns 20 per cent of the project, to talk about and think about restarting it.

“No means no. We’re not going ahead with this. Our people have stood up,” said Ignace. “You have to understand that we still have an ongoing title case that we’ve filed as a result of that proposal to that mine, and we’re going ahead with it.”

Tk’emlups Chief Rosanne Casimir says the Secwepemc leaders found the announcement “quite disturbing but not surprising.” She feels reinvigorating the Ajax project is a lost cause.

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“With this resubmission, it’s going to mean a lot of time, energy and financial resources to engage on a project that is in the wrong place,” said Casimir speaking with CFJC Today.

The Shuswap Nation conducted its own independent panel review on the project. It concluded there would be too many adverse environmental impacts on the area around Jacko Lake, or Pipsell as it’s called in the Secwepemc language. It is a sacred place for its people.

“It’s a cultural keystone area. It’s one of the few grasslands that are left there,” said Ignace. “There are red- and blue-listed species, plants and animals. It’s a storied place.”

Casimir added, “We all know that the mine will cause stress on our precious resources, and that includes salmon and trout, and all those who use the area for recreation.”

Even with the potential for jobs in the wake of significant downturns in the forest industry in B.C., the Secwepemc chiefs don’t feel the environmental risks are worth it.

“No still means no, and that we’re not against mining. It’s in the wrong place. It needs to be in a different location,” said Casimir.

Abacus noted in a release this week it would increase First Nations consultations in the next application. But the Secwepemc chiefs says there is nothing Abacus or KGHM can do to change their minds on the project.