(San Salvador/Ottawa) Visiting this Central American nation on the eve of a historic vote on legislation to ban metallic mining, a government official from the Philippines is warning Salvadoran political leaders that the mining company trying to gain a foothold here has wreaked social and environmental havoc with its operations in the Philippines.

Thank you for your support! We will keep up the pressure on the Feds and Province to actually enforce the law. Sign the petition now!

Quick Update:

• The Federal Crown did proceed to stay (i.e. shelve) MiningWatch’s charges before we had a chance to present evidence of the damages from the spill to the Court.

(Ottawa, Canada and Porgera, Papua New Guinea) Before dawn on March 25, some 150 houses in the village of Wangima were burnt to the ground by Mobile Units of the Papua New Guinea police, according to reports from Akali Tange Association, a human rights organization in Porgera. Wangima is located inside the mine lease area of Barrick Gold’s Porgera Joint Venture (PJV) mine. The violent raid on the village occurred while people were sleeping.

Williams Lake (B.C.). As Federal Crown Prosecutors move today in B.C. provincial court to stay (i.e. shelve) MiningWatch’s private charges over the Mount Polley mine disaster, the mining watchdog is releasing the names of over 25,000 Canadians who have endorsed a petition urging the Trudeau government not to let those responsible off the hook for the biggest mining spill in Canada’s history.

25,000 Canadians Urge Trudeau Government to Act

Environmental law experts were in Ottawa today calling for a next-generation law to assess the sustainability of proposed pipelines, hydroelectric projects and industrial facilities. An independent panel appointed by the federal government is reporting to Catherine McKenna, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, on March 31st, on its proposals for an environmental assessment law after spending several months hearing from people across the country.

Canadians show support for a new law and stronger environmental safeguards

OTTAWA – The report that the Expert Panel reviewing Canada’s environmental assessment law will release next week is critical to restoring public trust in how natural resources are developed, say environmental law experts.

The report is the result of the Expert Panel’s nationwide engagement, which gathered input from scientific and legal experts, Indigenous peoples, industry representatives and members of the public.

OTTAWA – A group of Canada’s leading experts on environmental assessment (EA) will speak to press on Parliament Hill on Tuesday about the key elements needed to strengthen federal decision-making in matters that affect the environment.

A group of 80 university professors have collectively signed a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, urging him to stick with his election promise of creating a human rights ombudsman for the international extractive sector in Canada. Shin Imai, associate professor at Osgoode Law School, says that an independent ombudsman is key and will help hold companies accountable for human rights and environmental violations.

See the interview with Prof. Imai here.

Provincial mining regulation is a dysfunctional mess that exposes taxpayers to billions of dollars in liabilities and puts ecosystems, 33 First Nations communities and 208 other B.C. cities and settlements at risk, says the University of Victoria’s Environmental Law Centre.

It has petitioned Premier Christy Clark for a full judicial inquiry into how the province regulates mining.