Passing though the Ring of Fire: Recent developments

According to the Wildlands League website, a non-profit conservation group, the number of mining claims in the Ring of Fire has increased by over 28% since September 2022. The claims now cover approximately 626,000 hectares, nearly 10 times the size of the city of Toronto.

As of December 2023, there were 33,074 mining claims in the area according to the Ontario ministry of mines. As of September 2023, Juno Corp., a Toronto based mining company is the largest claim holder with more than 17,000 mining claims covering approximately 333,000 hectares. The company holds exploration drilling permits at two sites.

Wyloo, formerly Ring of Fire Metals Ltd., is an Australia-based company that holds more than 10,600 claims. Its Eagle’s Nest project is the most advanced in the area. According to its 2012 feasibility study, the mine will last about 11 years and cost approximately $609 million to build. Reserves are estimated at 11.1 million tonnes grading 1.68% nickel, 0.87% copper, 0.87 g/t platinum, 3.09-grams palladium, and 0.18-gram gold. The company received a $500,000 grant from the Critical Minerals Innovation Fund to test storing tailings as underground backfill in mine workings.

George Pirie, minister of mines in Ontario says, “We have very active exploration on the ground, with Wyloo, Juno, and other junior companies. We obviously believe that the potential is unlimited. The mineralized area is just a generational opportunity to explore and develop the nickel, copper, cobalt, and all the other critical minerals that are in that area.”

“Regarding having the mine operational by 2030, we are progressing with our targets which are tied to the road plan. We are working with winter construction and the existing winter roads. Planned road construction is 2027. We have supportive relationships and partnership agreements with Marten Falls and Webequie, and they are completing environmental assessments. Our feasibility study will be completed in 2024,” says Wyloo’s Canada CEO, Kristan Straub.

“The environmental assessments are going very, very well. The consultations are going well. Roads are essential and we are doing everything we can possibly do to meet that 2030 deadline. So, I think everything is on track from that point of view,” says Pirie.

“As we fully develop these resources, we have got several initiatives to ensure that we execute this strategy. We have got the Innovation Fund, and the Ontario Junior Exploration Program is a critical part of that,” added Pirie.

The Critical Minerals Innovation Fund is a provincial program which supports Ontario-based companies in developing new mining technologies. The fund will provide up to five million dollars, with a maximum of $500,000 for projects that “support the research, development, and commercialization of innovative technologies, techniques, processes, and solutions for critical minerals.”

According to their website, “The Ontario Junior Exploration Program (OJEP) helps junior mining companies finance early exploration projects. These projects help boost mineral exploration, growth, and job creation in the province, particularly in northern and Indigenous communities. Eligible junior mining companies can receive up to $200,000 per project to cover 50% of eligible costs and up to $10,000 to cover 100% of eligible costs per project supporting Indigenous employment and business opportunities.”

The minerals have been valued at approximately $9 billion. Minerals include chromite, copper, zinc, gold, diamonds, nickel, and platinum. The International Energy Agency predicts the demand for nickel will increase by more than 60%, and copper by 40% in the next two decades.

Although chromite, copper, and nickel were discovered in 2007, the area’s remoteness, lack of infrastructure, opposition from some neighbouring First Nations, and bureaucratic red tape have been ongoing issues. The remote location can only be accessed by planes and winter roads (ice roads) only accessible for about two months of the year.

According to Qasim Saddique, a consultant to Marten Falls Nation and road project, and project director and co-lead for the northern road, “The main challenges are the terrain and the remoteness factor of the project. There is no infrastructure for miles, and it will be the first time the region will be connected to the road. It is a huge challenge to conduct baseline studies, and constructability for the future as there is limited access. The terrain presents certain challenges. There are significant water crossings, and muskeg.”

Three permanent roads are planned, connecting two of the communities and proposed mines. The Marten Falls community access road would create a 200-km north-south permanent route from Marten Falls First Nation to the provincial highway. The Webequie supply road is a proposed 107-km road which would provide year-round access from the community’s airport to the Ring of Fire. The proposed 117 km to 164 km northern road link would connect the mines to the two local roads.

According to the Marten Falls First Nation website, “Better access would allow reduced transportation costs for goods and services; meaning more affordable food, fuel, and other vital supplies and services; enhanced access to emergency, health and social services; increased opportunity for training and jobs for First Nation people and businesses during planning and construction; and increased opportunity for local sustainable economic development.”

“This project has the potential to finally bring economic reconciliation for remote First Nations in Ontario,” Chief Cornelius Wabasse of Webequie First Nation said in a news release. “But these opportunities must also be balanced against the potential environmental and socio-cultural risks associated with building a road,” Chief Cornelius added.

The federal government initiated a regional assessment in 2020 for the Ring of Fire, to examine the potential impacts development. Field study results and the draft environmental assessment will be released later this year. The environment assessment and impact assessment are expected to be released in 2025.

According to Gary Wheeler from the ministry of the environment, conservation, and parks, “Ontario’s environmental assessment process is a planning tool that ensures informed decisions are made before shovels are in the ground. Marten Falls First Nation and Webequie First Nation will be expected to explain the purpose and rationale for their proposed road project, fully evaluate the environmental effects and potential mitigation measures, and consult with interested persons, including Indigenous communities, the public, and government agencies”.

Road construction is estimated to take from five to 10 years and will be carried out by the Marten Falls and Webequie First Nations. The roads are estimated to cost approximately two billion dollars. While the Ontario government has carried over a one-billion-dollar commitment made by the former Liberal government, it is unclear where the other half of the money will come from.

There has been ongoing criticism that the process in Canada and Ontario from a mineral discovery to building a mine takes too long.

“The reality is we have got to get a handle on how we develop things in this country. It takes far too long to go through the regulatory process. We must change the way we do things and processes. We are taking seven years to get projects going, and after three years, we are not learning anything new. The impact assessment act takes three years to get done. The act came out in 2019, so how come no one has done it yet?” says Siddique.

“I was elected about 18 months ago and that is why the first thing we did was to develop and pass Bill 71, the Building More Mines Act that got royal assent in May of this year and the regulations are being built out right now. It is just unacceptable. It would take 15 to 17 years to permit a mine,” says Minister Pirie.

Bill 71 introduced amendments to the Mining Act that include changes to closure plans, recovery of minerals frameworks, and decision making. The minister can issue an order to defer one or more elements of a closure plan to prevent the delay of mining projects. Minor site alterations do not require filing a Notice of Material Change. Instead of being required to improve the land, the condition of the land must be comparable to or better than it was before the recovery activity.

Straub agrees that “permits take too long to issue, Ontario and Canada must address this issue. In Australia, there is a robust social and environmental assessment process, the length of time it takes to get things done and start new mines is very low. Seven to fifteen years is a key challenge if we cannot solve this problem.”

According to the minister of mines, “The economic benefits are already starting to accrue. Within the communities, the province has announced a billion-dollar commitment to develop the broadband and facilities, as well as the transmission corridors. There have already been hundreds of millions of dollars put into the Indigenous communities in the area.”

Straub said, “Wyloo will offer their own employees literacy training, and on the job certifications. Ontario offers Common Core training. There will jobs for both direct labour and contract employees. There will be approximately 300 to 350 employees onsite.”

Common Core programs and courses are offered by NORCAT in surface and underground diamond drilling, basic underground hard rock mine service, underground hard rock mining, surface mining, and first line supervising. NORCAT is the only non-profit skilled labour training and development organization in the world that has an operating mine.

On the Matawa Chiefs website, Marten Falls First Nation Chief Bruce Achneepineskum said, “The potential for the development of the Ring of Fire region will advance our First Nations sovereignty in our traditional territory and homeland. The agenda must be First Nations-driven and not determined by government, industry, and environmental interests only. We must ensure that the multi-generational impact be maximized to improve the lives of our people.”

There has been ongoing criticism of the lack of adequate consultation of First Nations on mining claims and the road projects. A Matawa Chiefs Council report, published in March 2023, stated, “Although the Matawa Chiefs Council have not provided their free, prior, and informed consent in the area known as the Ring of Fire and do not view it as an adequate consultation; agree to moving forward with drafting a Terms of Reference within a co-led regional impact assessment process, as proposed by the Eabametoong First Nation recommendations and options paper.”

Straub says, “Wyloo will work with the federal government to create a process and engagement with First Nations communities so they can receive information in real time.”

Ten other First Nations in the Treaty 9 territory have launched a lawsuit to change the way resource and land use decisions are made in the region. The lawsuit hopes to include First Nations in discussions with government prior to companies registering mining claims and commencing exploration.

On the Matawa Chief Council’s website, Chief Sol Atlookan of Eabametoong First Nation stated, “The reality is that no decisions can be made yet about the Ring of Fire roads or possible mines; the assessments must give our membership an informed view of the risks and possibilities of those things in due time, and then, when our people have all the right information to make a strong decision.”

Neskantaga, a remote Oji-Cree community located 430 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay, recently lost its case against the province claiming there is inadequate First Nations consultation under the provincial Environmental Assessment Act.

Judge Julia Shin Doi ruled on Oct. 20, 2023, that the court “has no jurisdiction to rewrite” or upgrade the Act, nor the authority “to make a declaration on the extent” of Ontario’s duty to consult and accommodate First Nations.

Neskantaga First Nation opposed the proposed road to the Ring of Fire and stated their concerns that mining activity will cause significant environment damage.

Chief Wayne Moonis from Neskatanga First Nation stated on the Matawa Chief Council website “Neskantaga First Nation has remained consistent in advocating for the free, prior, informed consent of the Indigenous Rights Holders in our homelands. It is imperative that the unified voice of our elders, men, women, and youth is heard, and our community protocols will be respected. First Nations are waiting for the government of Canada and the province of Ontario to demonstrate the proper respect and for an appropriate government-to-government relationship and dialogue to be established.”

Marten Falls First Nation submitted evidence that 22 First Nations, including Neskantaga, had “extensive notice, opportunities for dialogue and input, support for participation, and options for accommodation.”

“There must be Indigenous inclusion. Until recently, we did not get it right in Canada. The nation wants it done responsibly with community leadership and Indigenous leadership from day one. The local communities are building the road that reaches the mine. We need to share opportunities with neighbouring Indigenous and northern communities, keep communication open and available, and sharing responsibility,” said Siddique. 

Catherine Hercus is a freelance mining writer.