At last a government has shown real leadership and commitment to health justice by ending support for asbestos mining in Quebec.
Shortly after being elected, the new Parti Québécois government led by Pauline Marois cancelled the $58-million loan to restart operations at the Jeffrey Mine in Asbestos...
Despite sweeping changes to key parts of the Fisheries Act in last spring’s omnibus budget bill, Section 36, which deals with the release of “deleterious” substances, remained intact. That means the Metal Mining Effluent Regulations (MMER) which fall under Section 36 have also remained as they...
Two queries submitted to the Canadian government with support from MiningWatch in recent months have turned up further evidence that Canadian aid spending is at odds with communities’ interests.
On April 12, 2012, the Interprovincial Association for the Defence of Environmental Rights, a...
When Goldcorp flew four MPs and a Senator on a company jet to Guatemala at the end of August, it was lobbying both Canadian and Guatemalan legislators. MiningWatch broke the story to the Guatemalan press before the junket touched down in Guatemala City leading to strong national media coverage in...
People living in countries with weak governance and fragile legal systems have limited access to justice when faced with human rights and environmental abuses by multinational corporations. In 2008, the Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG) of the United Nations looking at the issue...
On October 12, 2012, members of Concerned Citizens of Sefwi and affected farmers in the area of Chirano Gold Mines in Ghana held a news conference in Accra to warn that they would reoccupy their lands that the mining company had taken over if they were not paid overdue compensation – with accrued...
Members of Neskantaga First Nation speak of their love for their land and the Attawapiskat River - an area threatened by extensive mining developments in the so-called "Ring of Fire" in northern Ontario. With visually stunning images taken and compiled by Allan Lissner.
Living next to a mine can really be the pits. Even in established and historic mining areas, local communities are being challenged with new bigger-than-ever projects and mine expansions that threaten their health, quality of life and properties. Three such communities that have been making news...
Statement by Insa Schultenkotter, resident of Keno City, Yukon: "Now the government has released another report dealing with mining and adverse impacts on a community... Is it another white-wash? I would say so. Gov. admits they don't have much knowledge about the effect of mining in or so close to...
Consistent public criticism of the industry for environmental and social issues at home and abroad have pushed the industry into taking a pro-active response to these concerns. Much of this effort is wrapped up in the language of “corporate social responsibility”. Our experience shows that while...
Maria Cuc Choc, a Mayan Q’eqchi’ community leader from El Estor in eastern Guatemala, visited Canada to speak about injustices Indigenous communities have experienced related to Canadian mining operations. She eloquently expresses outrage at the burning of Indigenous villages and the rape of a group...
The outgoing Charest government in Quebec received a lot of flack over the summer for offering a $58-million loan to an industry that was on its last breath — the mining and export of asbestos. (Recriminations came from international labour and health groups, editorials in most major Canadian papers...
Prime Minister Harper's annual trip north has again put the northern territories in a spotlight on the national agenda (at least for this week). Consistent with other rhetoric and legislative changes from the Conservatives, the tour put a heavy emphasis on resource extraction and mining as a...
The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency has asked for suggested amendments to the key regulation under the new Canadian Environmental Assessment Act (CEAA 2012): the list of projects that will be considered for assessment. MiningWatch's position is that all commercial-scale metal and diamond...
Canadian unions, civil society groups, and solidarity networks in Canada and the US write in support of continental day of action against the imposition of large scale resource extraction projects on communities without their consent.