Battle over uranium mining in northern Quebec heats up
The Globe and Mail is reporting on a petition brought by Strateco Resources Inc. seeking to force Quebec’s environment minister to allow underground uranium exploration at the company’s Matoush project.
Uranium mining is opposed by the Grand Council of the Crees, and Strateco’s permit was denied after the local Mistissini Cree community refused to consent to uranium development near its hunting grounds and trap lines.
The Globe reports that:
… the Cree view Strateco’s legal wrangling as a last-ditch attempt to undermine their rights under the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement of 1975.”
While the Matoush project is located on provincial territory, its disposition still requires Cree consultation under the treaty, said a lawyer for the Cree, Jessica Orkin of Sack Goldblatt Mitchell in Toronto.