First Nations in northern B.C. offered $10K payouts ahead of vote on contentious mine project

Some Tahltan First Nation members in northern B.C. are raising concerns about the timing of an “upfront payment” from a mining company ahead of a crucial vote on the Eskay Creek mine. 

The project involves the reopening of a former underground mine located approximately 80 kilometres northwest of the town of Stewart, B.C., not far from the Alaska border.

The vote will determine whether members approve a proposed Impact Benefit Agreement (IBA) between Skeena Resources and the Tahltan Central Government. The IBA sets out a royalties scheme and provides compensation for the resources at the site and the impacts of extracting them.

The referendum vote will take place this Saturday and Sunday. It’s asking Tahltan members whether they support the IBA. The Tahltan have a unique agreement with the province to consent-based decision making on the project – one of the first of its kind in Canada – which means it cannot proceed without their approval. 

Just weeks ago, the Tahltan Central Government (TCG) announced it had negotiated an upfront $40-million payment from Skeena that would see individual Tahltan citizens receive $10,000 at some point next year – if the IBA is ratified.

Several Tahltan members have told CBC News there is an emotional divide in the community, with some feeling hopeful about the proposed benefits and others who say the process has felt rushed and see the payment proposal as an attempt to influence the vote. 

In order to see the proposed agreement, Tahltan members had to review hard copies in law offices at a number of locations in B.C. and the Yukon. 

While the full contents are confidential, TCG has said publicly that under the IBA, the company would pay an estimated $210 million in royalties to the Tahltan over the life of the mine, as well as $81 million in shares, $17 million toward community supports, and $10 million toward an environmental fund. 

In a news release earlier this year, Skeena chief executive officer Randy Reichert said the project is expected to contribute $14 billion to the GDP of B.C. and Canada over the next two decades, and pay $3.6 billion in taxes.

Skeena Resources did not respond to a request for an interview from CBC News. 

TCG says 98 community consultations about the IBA have taken place across the Yukon, B.C. and Alberta, and that the proposed $10,000 payments are an effort to address concerns raised in those meetings.  

“During our engagement sessions, we heard feedback that not all Tahltan members would directly benefit from this project,” a TCG spokesperson wrote in an email to CBC News. “In response, we have negotiated direct funding for members.”

Several staff members of the TCG, including vice-president Kimberley Marion, founder of Kica Contracting Ltd. and owner of Sal’s Ironworks, own companies that have already had contracts working at the site. 

Marion did not respond to a request for comment from CBC News.