Mikisew Cree First Nation supports Teck Frontier project

The Mikisew Cree First Nation has thrown its support behind the Teck Frontier project.

“We applaud Teck, Canada and Alberta for working with us to identify groundbreaking measures to safeguard Wood Buffalo National Park, wood bison and our community,” said Chief Archie Waquan in a Friday news release.

“With the long-term commitments from Teck, Alberta and Canada, we see a strong path for protecting Wood Buffalo National Park, the Ronald Lake Bison Herd and our culture and community if the project proceeds. That is how we got to today’s decision to confirm our support.”

If the Teck Frontier mine is built at its planned location between Fort Chipewyan and Fort Mcmurray, it would produce up to 260,000 barrels of oil per day by 2037 and generate about 4.1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide annually.

Until Friday, support for the project from Mikisew Cree First Nation was up in the air, as the federal and provincial governments sparred over Alberta’s current and projected emissions, and how the project might affect them. The federal cabinet’s deadline to make a decision on the Teck project is next Friday.

The decision to get behind Teck was made using a “community-based decision-making framework aimed at ensuring a healthy future for our people and the Peace Athabasca Delta,” the release said.

The First Nation evaluated Teck’s environmental and social commitments and the mitigation and accommodation measures being brought to federal and provincial decision-makers against Mikisew’s Nikechinahonan Framework.

That framework is aimed at ensuring the project is consistent with the health of Wood Buffalo National Park, the health of traditional resources, and the cultural, physical and social health of the Mikisew community.

The federal government, through a cabinet decision, stands to make a decision on the project next week.