NationTalk: DEASE LAKE, BC, JULY 21, 2023 – The Tahltan Central Government has provided notice to Doubleview Gold Corporation (“Doubleview”) that the Tahltan Nation opposes Doubleview’s continued operations at the company’s Hat Property located to the northwest of Telegraph Creek within an area of Tahltan Territory that has been identified as being a highly sensitive area by the Tahltan Nation.
In 2021, the TCG entered a “Communications and Engagement Agreement” with Doubleview that sets out the terms by which Doubleview will engage the Tahltan Nation concerning its exploration and development activities within Tahltan Territory. Over the past several years the TCG has attempted to work collaboratively with Doubleview to reconcile previous conflicts and to find a path forward to ensure the protection of this sensitive area and has worked to reconcile previous conflicts and disagreements with Doubleview concerning its actions within Tahltan Territory.
However, with the TCG undertaking a major Territory-wide land use planning initiative and pursuing new and significant government-to-government frameworks with the Province of British Columbia that recognize the inherent jurisdiction of the Tahltan Nation within Tahltan Territory, the TCG must take steps to ensure the adequate protection and respect for sensitive Tahltan cultural resources. Accordingly, the Tahltan Nation wished to restate our opposition the exploration and development of mineral claims within the areas north of Telegraph Creek at this time – including Doubleview’s Hat Property.
The collective Tahltan Nation carries inherent jurisdiction within, and holds Aboriginal title and rights throughout Tahltan Territory, which is one of the most mineral-rich regions in British Columbia. Although the Tahltan Nation generally supports mining and exploration activities, these activities must be carried out in a manner that respects the Tahltan Nation’s inherent rights and decision-making practices. As Canadian law moves towards the standard of free, prior, and informed consent, as is recognized by British Columbia’s passing of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, the Tahltan Nation expects that the Province will take steps to ensure that Doubleview is not granted any further permits or interests within Tahltan Territory.
It is imperative for exploration and mining companies wishing to operate within Tahltan Territory to do so in a respectful manner that is consistent with Tahltan title and rights. Where a company is unwilling to engage the Tahltan Nation in this way or insists on operating in sensitive areas of Tahltan Territory, it will be extremely difficult to secure Tahltan support or to create value for the company’s stakeholders and investors.
ABOUT THE TAHLTAN NATION
The Tahltan Central Government (TCG) is the administrative governing body of the Tahltan Nation and is the representative government of the Tahltan Nation with respect to the inherent and collective title and rights shared by all Tahltan people. The Tahltan Nation’s Territory spans 95,933 square km of Northwest British Columbia or the equivalent of 11 per cent of the province. For more information, visit: www.tahltan.org.
For further information, please contact:
Ombrielle Neria
Communications & External Relations Director
Tahltan Central Government
604-316-0478
communicationsdirector@tahltan.org