Foreign support

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In spite of its recent federal approval, the Cheviot coal mine near Jasper National Park is continuing to raise concerns. . . this time globally. According to one Edmonton-based environmental group, the Japanese are expressing their worries through the Consulate General of Japan.

Gray Jones, executive director of the Western Canada Wilderness Committee, said he received a telephone call several weeks ago from the Consulate General of Japan in Edmonton. Gray said the call was to find out how extensive and what form the environmental protests would take against the Cheviot Mine. Cardinal River Coals, the parent company of the Cheviot mine project, has a three-year contract to supply coal exclusively to the Japanese.

"We believe the embassy was calling on behalf of concerned Cheviot Coal customers in Japan," said Jones. But Cardinal River Coals has not heard of any concern on the part of customers in Japan.

"We have not heard anything like that," explained Bob Logan, the company's senior environmental planner. 'The history of Cardinal River Coals is long. . . and we have a well-established reputation."

The Consulate General of Japan is not commenting on the issue. According to Jones, Japanese people are now being encouraged not to use coal from the Cheviot Mine and Japanese tourists are being encouraged to contact the Japanese and Canadian governments to register their opposition to the mine.

Environmental groups fear the 23 km long project, to be built at the gates to the Jasper National Park, will pose a serious threat to endangered Athabasca bull trout and the grizzly bear.

Dwayne Good Striker, of the Alberta Treaty Nations Environmental Secretariat, said the fight must continue to stop the project.

"This is the first domino of many here in Alberta," he said, citing Littlebow Highwood (a dam being built by the Alberta government) and the Caribou region (plans to develop an open pit coal mine north of Grande Cache) as other Aboriginal issues which need to be opposed. "We are fighting the Cheviot Mine because it is just the beginning of a downward spiral for Aboriginal groups in Alberta."

Gray Jones agrees with Good Striker, and said there are still a number of possible ways to stall the Cheviot Mine.

"We do have the courts," explained Jones. "Even if the courts . . . are only a delaying tactic, we hope that the strategic litigations to delay will cause involved parties to think twice."

Jones hopes the Japanese angle will play a major factor in the fight.

"Japan has one of the greatest growing environmental movements in the world," said Jones. "I think that over the coming years there will be tremendous environmental support and change."

The construction of the Cheviot mine is set to begin as early as next year.