The council passed a motion last week to hold a referendum on the proposed Grassy Mountain coal mine
Crowsnest Pass municipal council plans to ask its residents whether they want a coal mine in their backyard.
The council passed a motion last week to hold a referendum on whether residents support the development and operations of the proposed Grassy Mountain mine in the Rocky Mountains. Tuesday evening, council could set the date for the non-binding vote, which is to take place within 90 days.
Crowsnest Pass Mayor Blair Painter said most residents with whom council has spoken with support the project, but council has also heard through various sources, including social media, that those opposed are afraid to speak up about the contentious issue.
“We’re going to have this vote of all of our local residents so that we can get a gauge on how many are in favour and how many are not,” he said.
The open-pit, steel-making coal mine would not only create more jobs in the community but would also bring more families to the area, strengthening local schools and businesses, said Painter.
“There won’t be jobs just at the mine, there will be some spinoff industries to this.”
Northback Holdings spokesperson Rina Blacklaws said the proposed mine has received significant support from Crowsnest Pass residents.
“We welcome the opportunity for residents to have their say on this important project that will hopefully bring much needed jobs and economic activity back to the region,” said Blacklaws.
Northback has been holding open houses on the coal mine, including one in nearby Blairmore last week. Those who attended were “overwhelmingly supportive” of the project, she said.
However, Northback faces opposition from groups representing southwestern Alberta ranchers and landowners, as well as some municipalities in the region.
The Livingstone Landowners Group is among those organizations opposed to the coal mine, mainly over concerns about the impact of the proposed mine on water and air quality. President Bill Trafford called the decision to hold a referendum “grandstanding at the worst.”
“Having this referendum, saying our little children of coal miners from the 1900s can decide on behalf of all Albertans, makes no sense,” he said.
Albertans are clearly opposed to the coal mine, said Trafford.
The previous application for the same mine proposal was denied by federal and provincial environmental review panels over environmental concerns and negligible economic benefits, said Trafford, who was a member of the province’s coal policy committee.
Northback, formerly Benga Mining, has applied for three new exploration permits.
While the United Conservative Party government ruled no more coal development would be allowed in the Rockies, Alberta Energy Minister Brian Jean later wrote in a letter to the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) that the company’s proposal should be considered exempt from the coal mining ban. The regulator agreed, and public hearings on the applications are scheduled to take place Dec. 3-4 and continue in January.
But numerous requesters have asked the AER to delay the hearings until after the Alberta Court of Appeal rules on whether Northback’s proposed applications are legitimate.
Among those making that request is the Municipal District of Ranchland, the municipality that would house the proposed mine within its borders. The rural municipality successfully argued at the Appeal Court that the regulator wrongly exempted Northback. The court decided last month to hear the appeal.
The applications would be quashed if the court rules against the AER.
“Should the (district’s) appeal be successful, the written submissions of the full and limited participants, and the more than two weeks of oral hearing from the participants, will have been a waste of time and resources,” said Ranchland’s letter.
The AER hearing panel will make its decision on whether to delay the hearings after this Friday.
— With files from The Canadian Press