People locked out of Sio Silica ‘open house’ on sand mine proposal

An open house to discuss Sio Silica’s second proposal to build a sand mine in southern Manitoba took place behind closed doors, sparking criticism by people who were locked out, including those who successfully fought the project the first time.

Brokenhead Ojibway Nation and Sio Silica, an Alberta firm, held a meeting for Brokenhead members at a Winnipeg hotel Monday evening. The meeting was closed to media and anyone who wasn’t a member of the First Nation, which is located on Lake Winnipeg 60 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

Andy Kuczynski, a councillor for the Rural Municipality of Springfield, was one of the people who was turned away. He arrived with seven others, including fellow rural councillors who had questions about the proposal.

He said the lack of transparency is troubling and could cause the spread of misinformation because details about the project aren’t being publicly shared.

“It should be open to the public. They want to mine public land,” Kuczynski said. “Otherwise people might create stories that might not be true (about the project).”

The proposal is Sio Silica’s second attempt at building a mine in Vivian, east of Winnipeg. Kuczynski fought against Sio Silica’s first plan, announced in 2021.

The proposal involved drilling thousands of wells in an underground aquifer to harvest the sand, which is used to make products such as solar panels and computer chips.

In February 2024, months after it took office, the NDP government denied Sio Silica’s environmental licences. It cited concerns about the firm’s unproven extraction method and the lack of guarantee that drinking water for 100,000 people wouldn’t be harmed.

Months later, Sio Silica announced it would take another shot at developing a silica sand mine. The firm began meetings with Brokenhead leadership to pitch the project, which included three consultation sessions with First Nation members in November, the Free Press has reported.

Kuczynski said just because Sio Silica wants to extract sand from a different location in the aquifer doesn’t mean it won’t affect neighbouring communities who also rely on the water.

“The aquifer is very large and is supposed to service our community for generations to come,” he said. “If something happens, what’s going to happen to our community?”

Marlene Smith, a member of Brokenhead who attended Monday’s meeting, said she has concerns about the proposed mine.

When running, the mine is expected to bring $20 million in annual profit for Brokenhead and create jobs for the community, according to photos of Sio Silica’s presentation shared with the Free Press.

Smith said she’s worried if the mine is approved, it will affect the Brokenhead River, which runs through the community, the watershed, and Lake Winnipeg.

“We still drink muskeg tea. We use the water for our medicines. How do we justify killing that and the damages that could happen to our land?”– Marlene Smith, member of the Brokenhead Ojibway Nation

She said she worries it could harm fishing and cultural practices.

She attended the meeting to represent her grandchildren and future generations who deserve to have clean drinking water, she said.

“We still drink muskeg tea. We use the water for our medicines. How do we justify killing that and the damages that could happen to our land? I would never sell out my grandchildren or my great grandchildren yet to come.”

Smith said about 20 people attended the meeting, which was announced Friday afternoon. Smith said that wasn’t enough time for people to plan to attend.

Her sister, Bev Smith, who also attended, said she’s upset the meeting wasn’t open to the public, fearing community members would only hear one-sided information.

She believes people need to be educated and said that can only happen if experts and people from neighbouring communities are present. She said many First Nations members are concerned about the proposal but are too scared to speak publicly against it because they fear losing their jobs.

“We have to get both sides of the picture, and we have to make a concentrated effort to have our membership aware of all those issues so that they can make informed decisions.” she said.

In an email statement, Brokenhead Chief Gord Bluesky said the open house was held so First Nation members could understand the “full scope” of the project.

Bluesky and Carla Devlin, president of Sio Silica Corp., didn’t respond to questions about why the meeting wasn’t open to the public.

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A provincial spokesman said the government hasn’t received a new application from Sio Silica for a mining licence.

Manitoba Clean Environment Commission executive director Peter Crocker said no new reports have been requested by the province. The commission is an arm’s-length organization that offers recommendations to the province on projects that potentially affect the environment.

After the first proposal was rejected, it triggered a probe by the legislature’s ethics commissioner, Jeffrey Schnoor, at the NDP government’s request.

The 100-page report, delivered in May, recommended fines against former premier Heather Stefanson, deputy premier Cliff Cullen and then-economic development minister Jeff Wharton for breaking conflict of interest laws by trying to push the project through after the PC government lost the 2023 election and before the NDP was sworn in.

matthew.frank@freepress.mb.ca