Troy Knowlton, chief of the Piikani Nation, said his nation isn’t even close to greenlighting Northback Holdings’ proposal for a new coal mine on Grassy Mountain.
At a reconciliation gathering with Indigenous and non-Indigenous people held last Saturday, Knowlton made it clear that Piikani support for the controversial coal mine is not a given.
“We have not offered a position of support for the operation of the Grassy Mountain mine,” said Knowlton, who was elected chief in 2023.
The Piikani Nation is located about one hundred kilometers downstream from Grassy Mountain.
The previous council signed an impact benefits agreement with Benga Mining, the predecessor to Northback Holdings. Both are owned by Australian company Hancock Prospecting, which has been pushing for new open-pit mining in the Oldman River headwaters through its numerous shell ventures.
However, Knowlton said that agreement expired in 2021 when a Joint Review Panel rejected Benga’s mining plan as not being in the public interest.
The proposed coal mine has been a divisive issue for the Piikani. Last year Knowlton and his council supported Northback’s application for an exploratory drilling program, but it was met with criticism from within the nation.“I stand with our people that are showing frustration of this process and I support them, and I’ll continue to support them,” said former Piikani councillor Fabian North Peigan in a December 2024 Global Newsinterview. “At the same time, I urge our elected government to be just a bit more transparent, so that we won’t have these breakdowns.”
Support for exploration isn’t support for mining
The Alberta Energy Regulator approved Northback’s drilling application in May.
In his recent comments, Knowlton said support for the exploration program is not the same as support for the mine.
“There was some support for the drilling program but this was in hope that perhaps the drilling program would show that it is not a viable initiative for the further expenditure of dollars,” he said.
The toxic legacy of coal mining and selenium
Ongoing selenium water contamination and poisoning of fish downstream of old coal mines in the Crowsnest Pass area could sink Northback’s hopes for winning Piikani support.
Selenium is found in coal and coal mining waste rock. When this waste rock is exposed to air and water, selenium is released into the environment.
Most animals, including humans, need it in very small amounts. But above certain levels, selenium is toxic to people and other organisms.
Currently there is no cost-effective way to mitigate this coal mining pollutant. As TheRockies.Life previously reported, selenium pollution from coal mines in BC’s Elk Valley has found its way into the Town of Fernie’s drinking water supply.
New mine could push lake to the brink
In May a team of researchers, including Government of Alberta water quality specialist Colin Cooke, released a report that found high levels of selenium in fish from Crowsnest Lake.
The lake is downstream of abandoned coal mines on Tent Mountain and Grassy Mountain. All sampled fish showed selenium concentrations more than four times the limit deemed safe by the Alberta government.
The provincial government’s own scientists concluded in the study that “any further coal mine development may well push the Crowsnest fishery beyond sustainability.”
In response to the study, the Alberta government advised limiting consumption of brown trout, lake trout and mountain whitefish from Crowsnest Lake.
Piikanni Nation will do its own selenium study
Crowsnest Lake is a culturally important place and traditional fishery for Piikani people. Last Saturday at the reconciliation gathering near the lake, Knowlton announced that the nation is conducting its own testing of fish and water in Crownest Lake.
He expects to have the test results by the end of September.
Knowlton said the Piikani won’t sign anything until “we have a better picture of what’s going on” with the impacts of 50 years of coal mining.
Coal mines in the eastern slopes ran “fifty years of operations without any environmental mitigation,” Knowlton said. “They closed down in the 70s because of economic reasons. Pack up and leave, no reclamation.”
