Local

Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Uravan may dump mine plans

Nunavut study cramps exploration: CEO

By: Bruce Owen

Posted: 02/24/2009 1:00 AM | Comments: 0 (including replies)

A Calgary mining company may abandon its plan to explore for uranium in Canada's far north because rigid new guidelines -- partly intended to protect threatened caribou herds that make their way into Manitoba -- make it tough for them to do business in Nunavut."It will bring industry to a halt up there," Uravan Minerals Inc. CEO Larry Lahusen said Monday. "We can just walk away from it. We can sue the government for the $4 million we've spent on this project. We haven't decided."

Lahusen was responding to guidelines released Friday by the Nunavut Impact Review Board (NIRB) on what it expected of Uravan on a mandatory Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to be done before the exploration project can be approved.

Included in the impact statement is what effect the project, involving aerial reconnaissance and test drilling, will have on caribou herds that migrate into northern Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

The Free Press reported Sunday that one of these herds, the Beverly herd, has almost vanished, whereas a decade ago it numbered in the thousands. The concern is many aboriginal people living in northern Manitoba and the far north depend on the caribou for meat. Without caribou that meat source will have to be replaced, most likely by food flown from the south.

Lahusen said the new restrictions on Uravan -- it has to do the EIS in precise detail -- couldn't have come at a worse time as the mining industry is taking a huge hit due to the global recession.

He said the Nunavut review board's decision threatens the entire mining industry and job creation for many northerners.

The NIRB's guidelines for the impact statement come after months of protest from many northerners, wildlife experts and nature lovers. They lobbied against Uravan's proposal, saying it threatened sensitive caribou calving grounds. Caribou spook easily by low-flying aircraft and other development. That upsets their natural instincts and they veer off traditional migration routes, which in turn reduces calving.

Lahusen also said Uravan is caught between the Nunavut government and Ottawa over what's best for land-planning in the north.

"This I guess is a way to put industry between the meat and the sandwich," he said. "These bureaucracies are now allowed to create all these unnecessary studies."

bruce.owen@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition February 24, 2009 A5

You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.

The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010; View the changes. New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

WFP Hockey

Download our new hockey app for the iPhone for Winnipeg Jets updates
Editor's Bulletin

Sign up for daily bulletins from editor Margo Goodhand
Winnipeg Jets

All things NHL on our Jets landing page
Twitter

Follow our reporters and our news feeds on Twitter
News Cafe

Check out the menu, read our blog posts or get info on coming events
Facebook Fanpage

Follow our Facebook Fanpage for story links, contests and special events