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Minister directs Yukon gov’t corporations not to mull over coal-fired power projects
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-26 11:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Energy, Environment, Mining, Governance]Yukon Energy, Mines and Resources Minister Ted Laking issued a directive instructing the Yukon Development Corporation and the Yukon Energy Corporation to refrain from pursuing or considering coal-fired power generation projects. The ministerial directive coincides with an opposition motion brought by NDP MLA Carmen Gustafson, which urged the territorial government to direct the Yukon Utilities Board under section 17 of the Public Utilities Act to reject any applications for energy projects using coal. The debate highlights ongoing friction surrounding Vancouver-based Strategic Metals' coal exploration project near Braeburn, Yukon, and its potential application for power generation despite federal plans to phase out coal-fired power by 2030.
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Minister to Yukon gov’t corporations: no more coal
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-26 11:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Energy, Environment, Mining, Governance]Yukon Energy, Mines and Resources Minister Ted Laking issued a directive to the Yukon Energy Corporation and the Yukon Development Corporation prohibiting them from pursuing or considering coal-fired power projects. The directive coincided with an opposition motion brought by NDP MLA Carmen Gustafson, which urged the territorial government to direct the Yukon Utilities Board under section 17 of the Public Utilities Act to reject any applications for energy projects using coal. The political debate was prompted by Vancouver-based Strategic Metals proposing a coal exploration project near Braeburn, Yukon, and evaluating coal-fired power generation despite the federal government's mandate to phase out coal-fired power by 2030.
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'Ideal outcome,' minister says as Yukon's Eagle gold mine set to be sold for $140M
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-22 20:34:22.0
Tags: [National, Mining, Resources, Environment, Economy]Singapore-based Boroo Pte. Ltd. has signed an agreement with the mine's receiver, PricewaterhouseCoopers, to acquire the troubled Eagle gold mine in central Yukon for $140 million and committed to spending $1.5 billion to restart operations and perform cleanup work. The transaction follows a disastrous heap leach facility failure at the site owned by Victoria Gold Corp. in 2024 that spilled toxic cyanide into the environment and triggered intensive remediation efforts partially funded by a $220 million loan from the Yukon government. Subject to court approval expected by the end of the year, Boroo will pay $40 million in upfront cash, take over all remediation and site stabilization work from 2027 to 2029, and fully repay the territorial government for its emergency cleanup expenses.
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Effort to restart Con Mine discussed at Yellowknife town hall
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-22 16:17:16.0
Tags: [National, Mining, Resources, Environment, Economy]Gold Terra Resource Corp. CEO Gerald Panneton hosted a town hall in Yellowknife to discuss aggressive timelines for restarting gold mining operations at the historic Con Mine site, driven by gold prices exceeding $4,000 USD per ounce. The company aims to secure a permit by 2027, followed by 12 to 16 months of construction, targeting a production threshold of 1 million ounces to support a mine life exceeding 20 years. Public concerns raised at the event focused on localized impacts, including energy consumption via liquefied natural gas, workforce housing, arsenic pollution legacy risks, and exploratory drilling at Tin Can Hill and Walsh Lake.
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New water treatment plant at Giant Mine site set for operation in spring 2027
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-19 23:52:03.0
Tags: [National, Infrastructure, Mining, Environment, Resources]The Giant Mine Remediation Project announced that its new water treatment plant is scheduled to begin operations in spring 2027, replacing an obsolete system dating back to the 1980s. Built within a current $4.38 billion budget and forming part of an 18-year cleanup timeline ending in 2038, the state-of-the-art facility will reduce arsenic levels down to Health Canada's 10 parts per billion drinking water quality standard before discharging treated water directly into Yellowknife Bay. The project also features real-time sensors to halt discharges exceeding thresholds, alongside ongoing underground containment efforts utilizing thermosyphons to freeze 237,000 tonnes of toxic arsenic trioxide.
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Q&A | Years in the making: Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in chief weighs in on proposed Dawson regional land use plan
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-15 01:16:47.0
Tags: [National, Indigenous, Resources, Mining, Environment, Governance]Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in First Nation Hahke (chief) Darren Taylor expressed hope that a final agreement on the Dawson regional land use plan will be reached with the Yukon government in 2027. The proposed plan outlines acceptable land uses across 40,000 square kilometres in north-central Yukon, balancing environmental protection, stewardship, and historic preservation with economic development and critical mineral resource extraction. Chief Taylor emphasized that without the plan, the First Nation will withhold support for regional mining and development projects unless companies negotiate direct Impact Benefit Agreements (IBAs).
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Proposed framework would nearly double land available for mineral exploration in Whitehorse
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-08 00:41:19.0
Tags: [National, Municipal, Mining, Resources, Governance, Environment]City of Whitehorse staff have tabled proposed amendments to municipal policies, zoning bylaws, and the official community plan to establish a new mineral framework. The framework will nearly double the amount of land available for mineral exploration from 1,128 to approximately 2,200 hectares through the inclusion of "future planning areas," while implementing explicit regulations such as a 500-metre buffer between homes and exploration sites, a 100-metre setback from watercourses, mandatory bonding, and site reclamation standards.
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Gov't consultations underway on shutdown of N.W.T.'s Ekati diamond mine watchdog
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-07 11:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Mining, Environment, Indigenous, Resources, Governance]The Northwest Territories and federal governments have initiated consultations on the proposed dissolution of the Independent Environmental Monitoring Agency (IEMA), the watchdog organization that has monitored developments at the Ekati diamond mine for nearly three decades. The mine, operated by the now-receivership Arctic Canadian Diamond Company, ended production earlier this year and is currently a public liability managed by PricewaterhouseCoopers using a $326-million reclamation security fund. Territorial and federal officials are considering whether funds allocated to IEMA should be redirected directly to site reclamation activities. Indigenous governments—including the Tłı̨chǫ Government, Yellowknives Dene First Nation, Łutsel K’e Dene First Nation, North Slave Métis Alliance, and Kitikmeot Inuit Association—alongside IEMA executive director Mark Casas, are participating in the input process regarding the future of the environmental agreement and independent oversight.
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Survey shows broad support for mining activity in Whitehorse greenspace
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-06 21:29:47.0
Tags: [National, Municipal, Mining, Resources, Environment, Indigenous]Gladiator Metals is petitioning the City of Whitehorse to amend its top land-use policy by rezoning copper belt parcels designated as greenspace to allow expanded mineral exploration drilling. A city staff report released following nearly 1,000 written public submissions and a public hearing indicates that 64 per cent of respondents support the proposed amendment, while approximately one-third express opposition or concerns regarding environmental impacts, wildlife disruption, and potential mine failures. Local First Nations, specifically the Kwanlin Dün First Nation led by Chief Sean Smith and the Ta'an Kwäch’än Council, have expressed support for the exploration project to improve understanding of local mineral potential, while city councillors debate the residency and validity of survey respondents under the Municipal Act alongside the city's parallel development of a proposed mineral framework.
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N.W.T. minister won't reconsider wind-down of Diavik oversight board
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-09-29 18:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Environment, Resources, Mining, Governance]The Northwest Territories' Environment and Climate Change Minister, Jay Macdonald, has rejected a formal request from the Environmental Monitoring and Advisory Board (EMAB) to reconsider the scheduled wind-down of the Diavik diamond mine oversight board by March. EMAB chair Charlie Catholique and advocacy groups like Alternatives North argued that terminating independent monitoring before full site remediation is complete violates the mine's original social licence and public commitments. Meanwhile, the Ekati diamond mine remains under public receivership managed by PricewaterhouseCoopers, raising ongoing concerns among policy analysts and former legislators regarding the adequacy of territorial oversight, Indigenous co-management resources, and long-term environmental protection.
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Nearly 2 years later, tailings leak at Yukon’s abandoned Wolverine mine continues
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-09-29 11:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Mining, Environment, Resources, Indigenous]Nearly two years after a tailings leak was first identified at the abandoned Wolverine zinc mine in the Yukon, the Yukon government has been unable to locate or fix the liner issue beneath the facility due to technical water-level challenges and high precipitation. The mine, abandoned by Yukon Zinc Corporation in 2015 after financial difficulties, left the territory with a costly environmental legacy that included a failed attempt to increase financial security from $10.6 million to $35.5 million in 2018 and $42 million in government spending by 2024. While the Yukon government maintains that current water effluent being discharged into the creek meets the terms of its water licence, groundwater monitoring updates from May 2026 show ongoing metal and inorganic exceedances above Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment guidelines. Ross River Dena Council Chief Dylan Loblaw has expressed serious concerns regarding watershed safety, fish habitat impacts, and a lack of meaningful First Nations consultation in the site's closure and remediation plans.
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The ins and outs of the Yukon's biggest proposed mine
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-09-23 12:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Mining, Resources, Environment, Indigenous, Economy]Western Copper and Gold and the Casino Mining Corporation are proposing the Casino mine project in the Yukon, located between Carmacks and Dawson City, with an estimated 27-year lifespan to extract approximately 4.27 billion pounds of copper, 346 million pounds of molybdenum, alongside gold and silver deposits. The project is projected to create up to 1,400 construction jobs, 700 operational jobs, and contribute roughly $1.3 billion annually to the Yukon economy while generating 25 of the 34 critical minerals designated by Ottawa. However, the project faces major regulatory scrutiny, undergoing its first-ever panel review by the Yukon Environmental and Socio-Economic Assessment Board (YESAB) due to concerns from First Nations and conservation groups over impacts on the Klaza caribou herd, fish, wildlife habitats across five First Nation territories, and risks associated with tailings dams and heap leaching.
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Clean-up almost done at abandoned mine site on First Nation settlement land in Yukon
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-09-22 17:54:56.0
Tags: [National, Mining, Environment, Indigenous, Resources, Governance]The Yukon government spent approximately $750,000 to remediate the abandoned Discovery Creek placer mine site located on Little Salmon Carmacks First Nation settlement land west of Carmacks. Contracted through KBL Environmental, crews removed 300 cubic metres of contaminated soil and over 19,000 litres of diesel fuel hydrocarbons, alongside machinery, vehicles, and trailers, after land guardians discovered the site in 2022 following the owner's death in 2021. First Nation officials criticized the four-year gap between the site's discovery and cleanup, advocating for a formalized territorial framework and contingency fund to ensure rapid responses to environmental contamination on settlement lands.
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Upcycling waste: researchers pitch newest solution for Giant Mine’s arsenic trioxide
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-09-20 10:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Mining, Environment, Resources, Technology]Researchers led by Tamara Etmannski at the University of British Columbia have successfully converted arsenic trioxide samples from the Giant Mine into metallic arsenic suitable for use as semiconductors in electronic devices. The process involves dissolving the toxic byproduct in water and adding a chemical reductant to separate out pure metallic arsenic. The Giant Mine Oversight Board, chaired by Graeme Clinton, is reviewing the research alongside alternative permanent solutions—such as turning the waste into glass—to address the 237,000 tonnes of toxic waste currently stored and frozen underground in Yellowknife. While scaling the process to an operational plant would take approximately 10 years and does not fully offset the plant's capital cost through market sales alone, proponents note it could eliminate long-term maintenance and storage liabilities.
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First Nation opens work camp at Faro mine cleanup project in Yukon
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-09-18 20:54:45.0
Tags: [National, Mining, Environment, Indigenous, Infrastructure, Resources]The Dena Nezziddi Development Corporation, owned by the Ross River Dena Council, has opened the Tsē Zūl work camp at the abandoned Faro mine site in central Yukon to house workers for a massive federal remediation project. Located 200 kilometres northeast of Whitehorse, the facility is designed to accommodate nearly 300 workers and provide long-term revenue and employment opportunities for the First Nation. The Faro mine complex, which operated for nearly 30 years as a lead-zinc mine before its bankruptcy and abandonment in 1998, represents one of Canada's most complex industrial cleanup sites, expected to take decades to complete.
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Pause on Tibbitt to Contwoyto road shock for truckers but hunter hopes it’ll help caribou
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-09-16 20:24:14.0
Tags: [National, Transportation, Mining, Resources, Environment]The owners of the Ekati, Gahcho Kué, and Diavik diamond mines in the Northwest Territories, alongside trucking stakeholders, have agreed not to construct or operate the Tibbitt to Contwoyto winter road for the upcoming winter season due to winding down diamond mine production. The suspension of the ice highway—which connects the end of the Ingraham Trail to the mine sites—will significantly impact northern truckers' revenues and local businesses such as Harley's Hardrock Saloon in Yellowknife. Conversely, local hunters and wildlife advocates express hope that the closure will reduce easy access for overhunting and vehicle-related caribou mortality, allowing regional caribou populations and migration patterns to recover.
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They're two of the biggest proposed mining projects in the Yukon. How will they be powered?
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-09-15 10:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Mining, Energy, Environment, Climate, Resources]Two major proposed mining projects in the Yukon—Western Copper and Gold’s Casino Mining Corporation project and Talamore Mining’s Coffee Gold mine project—are planning their on-site power generation systems using liquefied natural gas, diesel, and solar power. The Casino project anticipates emitting roughly 16,310 tonnes of greenhouse gases annually and is evaluating a future connection to the proposed Yukon-B.C. Grid Connect intertie, while the Coffee Gold project expects to emit approximately 91,900 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually over its 11-year operating span. Both companies anticipate paying the industrial carbon tax while pursuing emission reduction strategies such as overhead cable systems for haul trucks and expanded solar arrays.
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‘Environmental racism’: Fort Chipewyan residents protest proposed treat-and-release plan for tailings water
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-09-09 12:00:00.0
Tags: [Alberta, National, Environment, Energy, Mining, Indigenous]Residents of Fort Chipewyan, Alberta—including members of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation, Mikisew Cree First Nation, and Fort Chipewyan Métis community—protested a proposed treat-and-release plan by Suncor Energy to discharge treated oilsands tailings water into the Athabasca River. Suncor aims to begin operating its water treatment plant and releasing treated tailings by 2030, a proposal supported by recommendations from the Alberta oilsands mine water steering committee to manage over 380 million cubic metres of mine water and 1.5 billion cubic metres of fluid tailings. Federal officials from the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Nature noted that no federal effluent regulation is currently in place for oilsands mines, meaning such operations remain subject to the general prohibition against releasing deleterious substances under Section 36(3) of the Fisheries Act.
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N.W.T. regulator and Ekati mine receiver reach resolution over unauthorized waste disposal
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-09-03 15:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Environment, Mining, Resources, Governance]The Wek'èezhìi Land and Water Board resolved a dispute with the Ekati diamond mine's court-appointed receiver, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), following the unauthorized dumping of approximately 32,000 kilograms of blasting emulsion into the Long Lake tailings and wastewater facility. Northwest Territories Environment and Climate Change Minister Jay Macdonald confirmed that while government inspectors did not authorize the discharge, PwC's post-incident response and corrective measures were comprehensive and sufficient to maintain confidence in site management. In response to the infraction, PwC implemented new corrective procedures including mandatory written authorization for all water and wastewater movements, a single on-site accountability point person, increased environmental staffing, and pre-approval requirements for out-of-plan activities.
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Company works to sell Yukon on coal-fired electricity amid push to phase it out
Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-08-28 22:46:19.0
Tags: [National, Energy, Mining, Resources, Environment, Climate]Vancouver-based Strategic Metals has proposed developing the Division Mountain deposit southwest of Braeburn, Yukon, to fuel a proposed 100-megawatt coal-fired power plant and open pit coal mine. The facility would burn 500,000 tonnes of coal annually for over a century to address the territory's growing energy deficit and recent grid strains. The proposal faces intense criticism from researchers and conservationists, including Eyab Al-Aini of the Canadian Climate Institute and Sebastian Jones of the Yukon Conservation Society, due to a lack of carbon capture and storage details, greenhouse gas emissions that are double those of natural gas, and the federal government's 2030 phase-out pledge for unabated coal plants.
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