The British Columbia Supreme Court began hearing arguments Monday in Gitxaała Nation’s legal challenge against the provincial government’s “free entry” mineral claim staking regime.
BC’s current Mineral Tenure Act permits anyone with a free miner certificate to acquire mineral claims online through an automated system in First Nations’ territories, without their consultation or consent.
In October 2021, the Nation filed a legal challenge in Supreme Court seeking to overturn the province’s granting of multiple mineral claims from 2018 to 2020 on Banks Island, in their territory. The Gitxaala claim they never consented to issuance of claims, were not consulted, and were never notified of the pending decisions and said since it launched the case the provincial government has made public commitments to reform the mineral tenure regime, yet it has not changed its legal position.
The lawsuit asks the province to invalidate existing claims and suspend staking in Gitxaala territory.
The case is the first of its kind in the Canadian province and argues that BC’s practice of granting mineral claims without Indigenous consultation or consent is inconsistent with constitutional requirements as well as the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), which BC has legally committed to implement.
“Despite the reported progress and new relationships promised when the government signed the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People Act into law, the Province continues to give away mining rights in our territory without our consent,” Gitxaała Chief Councillor Linda Innes said in a media statement.
“This impacts our ownership, governance and use of our lands, and interferes with our right to make management decisions and to choose our own priorities,” Innes said.
The case will be heard in Supreme Court until April 14.
