In 2004, MiningWatch Canada partnered with two women’s groups in the remote mining communities of Wabush and Labrador City (together known as Lab West) to consider the health implications of living in a mining town for community women. The Labrador West Status of Women Council and the Femmes...

On March 18-19, MiningWatch Canada facilitated a meeting in Whitehorse to assess resources and capacity in the Yukon to work on mining, prioritize issues, expand working relationships and work on strategies. Invitees included a number of individuals and representatives of local organizations.

1. ens...

In northwestern Tanzania, in the Shinyanga region, there is a massive gold mining area called Bulyanhulu, just south of Lake Victoria.

Since the 1980's Bulyanhulu has been mined by small-scale local artisans who had questionable rights to mine. However, the government tolerated their mining...

Peter McCaslin's article High Stakes, Hard Lines Pose Threat to Peace in Northeastern Thailand and his paper Somboon Mining Project: A Failure of Democracy in Thailand were also posted by the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre. The Centre asked the company to respond, and Asia Pacific...

The House of Commons Subcommittee on Human Rights and International Development submitted its third report to the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade, which adopted the report on June 26, 2005. The report (the Committee's 14th), Mining in Developing Countries -- Corporate...

DeBeers has staked over 1.94 million hectares of land in north eastern Manitoba near the Hudson Bay coast, in return for a payment of $1 million to the Manitoba government - about 50 cents a hectare. The claims surround another 60,900 hectares staked by Western Warrior Resources.

Manitoba has a system of claim staking that enables large areas to be claimed at one time. Mining claims can vary in size from a minimum of 16 hectares to a maximum of 256 hectares. A mining claim in unsurveyed territory is approximately rectangular in shape; the length cannot be greater than four...

There are seven really significant "Type II" abandoned mine sites in the Yukon. Some of them are mired in ownership questions which have to be resolved before the final decommissioning can take place. The seven are: United Keno Hill, Clinton Creek, Mt. Nansen, Faro, Ketza, Sa Dena Hess and Brewery...

Most asbestos mining in Canada takes place in Québec. At its peak Québec had 10 of the 13 asbestos mines in Canada. The Thetford Mines region in Québec is home to most of these mines, the largest being the Jeffrey Mine. In fact, the Jeffrey Mine is the largest open pit asbestos mine in the world.

A...

Good mine closure and environmental plans are important. They should form part of the Environmental Impact Assessments prepared by the company and financial bonds should be posted to cover these costs in the event that the company goes bankrupt. Yet even when mine sites have been 'restored' and...

Impact and Benefit Agreements (IBAs) seek to address the impacts a mine will have on a community and the environment and set the ground rules for a relationship between the community and a mining company.

Law or policy does not require iBAs, but many companies may seek to negotiate IBAs...

It is estimated that 60% of all mining activity in Canada takes place on Aboriginal lands. In many cases Aboriginal people have been hit the hardest by the social and environmental impacts of mining activities, from exploration through mine development and operation and to closure and abandonment...

The Victor Diamond Project is located in Northern Ontario, approximately 90 km west of the coastal community of Attawapiskat. This project involves Attawapiskat First Nation, and three other remote communities on the shores of James Bay: Moose Cree, Fort Albany, and Kashechewan First Nations. It...

Ontario's Ministry of Northern Development and Mines announced in 1999 a $27 million commitment to an abandoned mines rehabilitation program, with an emphasis on "eliminating risks to public safety" through the capping of abandoned mine shafts, removal of mine structures, and backfilling pits and...

In Ontario, a regulation made under Bill 26 (the Savings and Restructuring Act introduced in January 1996) enabled profound changes to the Public Lands Act. 

The Giant Mine went into production in 1948 using a roasting operation for its gold sulphide ore. This mine was the last gold-roasting operation in Canada. Arsenic, in the form of arsenic trioxide, and sulphur dioxide were emitted during the roasting. For the first three years of operation, no...