Cheslatta reject Huckleberry Mine

Mining

Page 40

A B.C. ministerial decision to allow the Huckleberry open-pit copper

mine planned for Cheslatta traditional territory, 86 km south of

Houston, B.C., is being challenged by the chief and council of the

Cheslatta Nation. It had been under review since May, 1995, but was

given the go-ahead in December under the province's Environmental

Assessment Act, and more recently by the federal government.

Chief Marvin Charlie vowed to continue to fight the proposed mine, and

the Sierra Legal Defence Fund of Vancouver, which has filed a court

action against the mine, warned that the environment, too, could pay a

heavy price.

"There are too many unknowns for us to make a decision to approve the

mine," Charlie said, "and the environmental review has done little to

address many of our concerns."