Canadian companies have been linked to allegations of killings, torture, forced labour, arbitrary detention and intimidation amongst other abuses, according to six new reports published this morning by the Canadian Network on Corporate Accountability (CNCA).
A new manifesto critiques the "clean energy" transitions of the Global North and offers an alternative vision from the Global South.
"The energy transition should be part of a comprehensive vision that addresses radical inequality in the distribution of energy resources and advances energy democracy. It should de-emphasize large-scale institutions—corporate agriculture, huge energy companies—as well as market-based solutions. Instead, it must strengthen the resilience of civil society and social organizations."
Minister Wilkinson of Natural Resources and Minister Murray of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard issued a statement today on seabed mining that fails to align Canada with global calls for a moratorium on seabed mining in international waters.
Underwater mining to make batteries could create ‘a massive deadzone’ on the ocean floor. Canada has issued a temporary domestic ban — but regulating international waters is trickier
Francesca Fionda, The Narwhal
Olivia Rosane, EcoWatch
A leaked video of a deep-sea mining test showing a plume of sediment being released into the ocean is reigniting concerns about the controversial practice.
Galiano Gold says authorities investigating deaths of contractors near a tailings storage facility
A Vancouver-based gold mining company is reporting the deaths of two contractors at its operation in the West African country of Ghana.
Frank Landymore, Futurism
A group of scientists hired by a Canadian firm to monitor its deep sea mining operations was so alarmed by the firm's careless discharging of sediments into the ocean, The Guardian reports, they covertly recorded the dumping and leaked it to the public.
Leyland Cecco, The Guardian
Video footage from a deep-sea mining test, showing sediment discharging into the ocean, has raised fresh questions about the largely untested nature of the industry, and the possible harms it could do to ecosystems as companies push to begin full-scale exploration of the ocean floor as early as this year.
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On February 6, 2023, MiningWatch's Asia Pacific Coordinator Catherine Coumans testified before the House of Commons Standing Committee on International Trade on the "environmental and human rights considerations regarding Canadian mining firms abroad."
The full recording can be viewed here.
Banning deep sea mining is among the measures one group of conservationists is hoping to see. They’ve made their voices heard today protesting outside IMPAC5. They say seabed mining can cause further harm to an already fragile ocean ecosystem. CBC News, Vancouver
“You're looking at mining an area that will be the biggest mining area on Earth if this goes ahead.” — Catherine Coumans, MiningWatch Canada
