Ottawa provides $2.5M to five Yukon First Nations with potential for critical minerals development

Ottawa will be funding a $2.5 million pilot program supporting five Yukon First Nation-led studies in areas with the potential for critical mineral development. The funding is also part of Ottawa’s efforts to secure a national supply of critical minerals.

The government will be allocating funding to the following recipients: Champagne and Aishihik First Nations and Kluane First Nation, First Nation of Na-Cho Nyäk Dun, Little Salmon/Carmacks First Nation, Selkirk First Nation, and White River First Nation.

The federal government said Indigenous participation and Indigenous knowledge  will help to shape decisions on major resource and infrastructure development and strengthen the Yukon and Canadian economies. Each study will be designed to meet the needs and interests of First Nations across the Yukon, including environmental, social and economic impacts.

Gary Anandasangaree, federal minister of Crown-Indigenous relations and northern affairs, commented,  "Yukon First Nations have a vital role to play in leading important research that will help inform reviews of critical mineral and infrastructure proposals within their traditional territories. and assist Canada in meeting its clean growth targets. As stewards of the land, their involvement is foundational to balancing major resource development with mitigating cumulative impacts in the Territory."

Ottawa will be funding this work through the Northern Regulatory Initiative, which is part of Canada's critical minerals strategy and contributes to the implementation of the cabinet directive on regulatory efficiencies for clean growth projects.

Government sources said gathering this information early will inform regulatory processes, so decisions can be better informed and made faster.  Regional, baseline, and cumulative effects studies are important decision-making tools in northern regulatory regimes, which inform federal projects, plans and policies.