The Yukon Chamber of Mines Responds to Supreme Court of Canada Decision on Peel Plan

Whitehorse, Yukon
The Yukon Chamber of Mines (YCM) is responding to the Supreme Court of Canada judgement on the Peel Watershed Land Use Plan process. YCM remains concerned with the trajectory of land withdrawals in Yukon.

Currently 17% of Yukon’s total land mass is off limits to mineral exploration, the highest percentage within any province/territory in the Country.

As land withdrawals remove accessibility to prospective areas, Yukon becomes a less attractive place to explore, and companies end up investing elsewhere.
The Peel region has been the site of numerous major exploration programs while remaining one of the world’s premiere pristine areas, a testament to the way in which modern mineral exploration practices respect the environment. The Peel region is also home to major mineral deposits that have the potential to drive Yukon’s economy for generations to come.
Samson Hartland, Executive Director of YCM said: “Successful Land Use Plans are transparent, inclusive, holistic, flexible, adequately resourced and evidence based by including socio-economic data such as mineral and exploration potential. Land withdrawals are not always being made based on sound evidence, at the conclusion of a robust policy process.”
The YCM will continue to work with the Land Use Planning Council and with all orders of government to ensure that land use planning takes scientific data into account at the outset of a process.
For more information, please contact:
Samson Hartland Executive Director
867.667.2090
ed@yukonminers.ca