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Feature Article - August 2, 2007MVCto test wells in vicinity of uranium exploration properties
by Jeff Green
In a reaction to concerns sparked by uranium exploration in North and Central Frontenac and Lanark Highlands, the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority (MVC) will be undertaking a program of testing private wells within a 1 to 5km radius of the properties that have been staked by uranium exploration companies.
“As part of our source water testing work, we are looking to fill some voids in our database with this program,” said Doug Nuttall, a Water Resource Engineer with MVC.
The MVC will be asking people to volunteer their private wells for testing. The tests are similar to tests that have been conducted throughout the watershed, and will cover 20 chemical and mineral parameters. In this case an extra parameter has been added: uranium concentration.
“We currently have data from one well in Ompah, one in Plevna, and one in Oso, which is an insufficient sample,” Nuttall said, in explaining which areas MVC would like to focus on. By contrast, the agency has a lot of data from communities such as Elphin and McDonalds Corners in Lanark Highlands.
Greg Luster, a geologist from Frontenac Ventures Corporation, the main uranium exploration company in the region, thinks the testing is a good idea.
“People worry about what might happen as the result of uranium exploration and, possibly mining, but the reality of what is here and has been here for a very long time is a more likely problem, in my view. I would test my water if I lived in North Frontenac,” he said.
The study will be done by MVC, who will conduct a physical survey of the subject well, and will take a water sample. Testing costs $104. MVC will cover 50% of the cost and the property owner the other 50%. Specific results will be released only to the individual property owners, but the data will be used in mapping and other applications.
Property owners concerned about current uranium levels, or levels of other heavy metals, or those concerned about potential deterioration of their water due to changes that may take place, might well consider contacting Mississippi Valley about this project, which is setting out to do 40 tests over the next two months.
Details about this project and how to sign up will be available at MVC.ON.CA in the coming days, and in the Frontenac News next week.
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North Frontenac Takes Stand on Uranium Miningby Jule Koch Brison
It came in spite of considerable opposition from Mayor Maguire, but late at Thursday night’s meeting in Harlowe, after almost all the audience had left, North Frontenac Council passed a resolution asking the Province of Ontario to declare a moratorium on uranium exploration and mining.Several people had attended the meeting in hopes of hearing from the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines (MNDM) on the contentious issue of uranium mining. However, the ministry had sent a letter declining council’s invitation to attend the meeting. The letter stated, “Some of the questions [that council had submitted] bear directly on a matter that is before the court and therefore, it would be inappropriate for any party to comment on those.”Council had also received a letter from Mr. & Mrs. Earl Recoskie, property owners on Hwy. 509, next to a proposed uranium exploration and mining site, which said, “We, along with other residents of North Frontenac Township, are withholding our tax payment submissions until Your Honour and each council member makes a stand on whether you support uranium exploration and mining in our area or do not support uranium exploration and mining in our area”. The letter included a picture of the Stanrock Tailings Wall in the Elliot Lake area, and the dead trees close to it. The “wall” is a 30ft. high pile of millions of tons of radioactive mill waste.Mayor Maguire commented, “No taxpayers have the option of not paying taxes without being assessed a penalty... If 3 years pass, the property can be repossessed by the township.” He also said that the letter implied that council was being held to ransom, and, “This council will not be forced into making decisions at any time.”
Maguire was scheduled to give an update on the Ardoch Algonquin First Nations and Allies (AAFNA) later in the meeting, but beyond a comment that their recent Pow Wow was held at the Blues Skies grounds instead of in Plevna, he said he had nothing to report. At that point, most of the audience left.However, at the end of the meeting, after all of the items on the agenda had been dealt with, Councilor Wayne Good brought up the subject of uranium mining.Referring to an article in the Sept. 13 edition of the Frontenac News, which stated that Central Frontenac Council had joined with Lanark Highlands in calling for the Province of Ontario to declare a moratorium on uranium mining and exploration, he said, “It seems like we’re the only ones who aren’t doing anything about this. If everybody is prepared to take a stand, we should be doing something.” He went on to state that he was concerned about the effects of uranium exploration on subsurface water but he had seen no mention of that in any reports – “they just talk about global warming.” He said that although at first the idea of a mine bringing jobs into the area seemed attractive, he changed his mind because of concerns about the bad effects of uranium exploration and mining. He said he was hoping to get more information from the MNDM but guessed they had been told by their superiors not to come. “What are they hiding?” he asked.Councilor Wayne Cole said that he supported Wayne Good’s position. Cole said that while he didn’t support AAFNA’s occupation of private property [at the Robertsville Mine], he supported what they were trying to do in stopping uranium mining. He said that the issue should be resolved at the provincial government level, a comment that was later echoed by Deputy Mayor Jim Beam.
Mayor Maguire stated that it would be premature for council to take a position now and that if council wanted to vote on the issue he would abstain. He said that he has heard from a lot of people who feel that uranium mining is safe and it would be a good thing for the township, “We don’t have to rush to form an opinion until we have all the facts….We’re gathering facts”, he saidCouncilor Fred Perry said that with the information he has right now, he would vote against uranium mining.Councilor Bob Olmstead said that he was in favour of uranium mining, and was disappointed when Frontenac Ventures Corporation had to close down their plans for uranium exploration and send the students they had hired home.Deputy Mayor Beam and Councilor Good both expressed regret that they had not brought up the subject earlier in the meeting, when most of the audience was present.Reluctantly, Mayor Maguire then asked for a resolution to be drafted. It stated, “That the Council of the Township of North Frontenac petition the Province of Ontario to declare an immediate moratorium on Uranium Mineral Exploration and Mining”. In a 4 to 2 recorded vote, with Mayor Maguire and Councilor Olmstead voting nay, the motion was passed. Councilor Watkins was absent.
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Feature Article - September 27, 2007Two Solitudes: a Kingston Courtroom & the Mississippi Riverby Jeff Green
Harold Perry and Randy Cota paddling with the unity flag.
The ongoing occupation of the Robertsville mine site, access point to a 30,000 acre mining claim, by members of the Shabot Obaadjiwaan and Ardoch Algonquin First Nations, is being played out this week on a five-day paddle along the Mississippi and Ottawa rivers, and in Courtroom A of the Frontenac County Court House.
On Saturday, a couple of dozen canoes and other boats departed from the bridge over Mud Lake at Ardoch to accompany a small party of canoeists, made up of Algonquin and non-Algonquin anti-uranium activists who were embarking on a 6-day paddle to Victoria Island on the Ottawa River near Parliament Hill. They hope to arrive on Thursday night, and will proceed to Parliament Hill for a rally scheduled for 10 AM on Friday morning on Parliament Hill.
The canoeists are carrying two jars full of water that were filled by Ardoch Algonquin Honourary Chief Harold Perry. They will be delivered to Chief William Commanda in Ottawa.
The paddle was undertaken to illustrate the flow of water from the site of the embattled uranium exploration project near Crotch Lake and the Mississippi River in North Frontenac. The anti-uranium activists assert that a uranium mine in the area would pose a serious risk to the water flowing down the river to the nation’s capital. (For further information about the rally at Parliament Hill, see www.ccamu.ca)
The call of the loons on the river contrasts with the wrangling of the lawyers in the Kingston Court. On Monday morning, lawyers for the company, the two First Nations, the OPP, the Province of Ontario, and the Algonquin Nation Representatives to the ongoing Algonquin Land Claims process, gathered before Ontario Superior Associate Chief Justice J.D. Cunningham.
The occasion was the first day of a hearing on a motion for an interlocutory injunction that Frontenac Ventures Corporation is seeking in an attempt to force the Algonquin and non-Algonquin protesters to leave the Robertsville site and allow the company to continue its exploration program, which was halted on June 28 when the occupation began.
The two First Nations communities had already informed Justice Thomson, who was hearing the ongoing case until this week, that they would not participate in the injunction hearing, citing Justice Lindon of the Ipperwash enquiry, who said Aboriginal land disputes should be dealt with by politicians and not courts.
Before commencing the hearing, the parties had a piece of legal housekeeping to deal with. The company has filed contempt charges against eight individuals, including the leaders of the two communities, for breach of an interim injunction levied by Justice Thomson concerning the same occupation, and lawyers from all sides discussed a tentative date for the commencement of that case. Justice Cunningham will be available next week, but he said he was unsure whether it would be appropriate for him to hear the case since he is charged with ruling on a longer term injunction on the same matter.
Neil Smitheman, the lawyer for Frontenac Ventures Corporation, then spent most of the day outlining the company’s case for an interlocutory injunction. Smitheman outlined his client’s activities, and described the occupation of the Robertsville mine as an “illegal, quasi-criminal occupation” which is doing “irreparable harm” to his client’s legal business interests. He said all that is required of Justice Cunningham is that he orders that the occupiers leave the site.
The Attorney General of Ontario and the Algonquins of Ontario are two parties that have intervener status in the case and their lawyers were to address the court once Smitheman wrapped up his case late Monday afternoon. It was anticipated that the case would have wrapped up by Wednesday at the latest. The judge’s decision will come some time later.In the first hearing of this case, which ended on August 2, Justice Thomson took 13 days to render his decision..
Kittle
Mr. Kittle Goes to Ottawaby Jeff Green
John Kittle is a soft-spoken Snow Road resident who has taken on a spokesperson’s role within the group, Concerned Citizens Against Mining Uranium (CCAMU).
This week he took his message to the parliamentary press gallery in Ottawa, bringing along Dr. Syd Brownstein, a retired member of the National Research Council.
Kittle began his remarks with a warning to the City of Ottawa, saying it “could be exposed to radioactive pollution if uranium mines are allowed to be developed in cottage country west of Ottawa.”
He then repeated CCAMU’s call for Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty to declare a moratorium against uranium mining in eastern Ontario. “This must be done now to prevent further damage to our environment,” he said.
Syd Brownstein said uranium itself is “only mildly radioactive,” when it is encased in granite as it is throughout the Canadian Shield, but when it is disturbed it can break down into “decay products that are highly radioactive.”
One of those decay products is radium, which Brownstein said is in the same chemical family as calcium. This chemical affinity means that minute amounts of radium concentrate in the bones and teeth of animals and humans when they are exposed to it.
Another of those products is polonium - 210, a deadly poison that is in the same chemical family as sulphur and concentrates in internal organs. Polonium 210 was used in the murder of Alexander Litvitenko in London, England, last year.
“What I have been talking about thus far are facts,” Brownstein said, and then he presented his opinion about the risks involved in mining uranium.
“Unless there is a great need for uranium, any risk is not worth it,” he said, “If it is only being done for the profit of a few people, then it should not even be considered.”
Elizabeth May, the leader of the Green Party of Canada, held a press conference immediately after John Kittle, and she began by reading a statement written by Dr. Gordon Edwards, the President of the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility.
Edwards referred to radium and polonium-210 as well, and he also mentioned the issue of radon and uranium mining. “During uranium exploration and mining, huge quantities of radon gas are also released into the air, and dissolved in surface waters. The US Surgeon General has determined that radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer after cigarette smoking.” Edwards wrote.
He concluded by saying he “salutes the Algonquin peoples for trying to do what the government should have been doing all along – protecting the health and safety of the people of the Ottawa region …”
At the opening of her own remarks, Elizabeth May said that the Green Party “stands in solidarity with CCAMU in urging Dalton McGuinty to declare a moratorium on uranium mining.” She also said the Green Party supports the Shabot Obaadjiwaan and Ardoch Algonquin First Nations in their occupation of the mining exploration properties in North Frontenac.
“Energy efficiency and improved supply side management can solve Ontario’s energy needs,” she said in arguing for an end to the province’s commitment to nuclear power.
Currently, nuclear power comprises 54% of Ontario’s electricity supply, and the government has announced its intention to build new nuclear plants in the future.
The renewed interest in nuclear power world wide is the main factor in the price of uranium rising from a low of $6 a pound a few years ago to a high of $140 US earlier this summer, sparking a flurry of uranium staking. It has since dropped to $85 US. There are no active uranium mines in Ontario.
According to Elizabeth May, the Ontario government asked the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) to bring forward a plan for a secure energy future for the province, and the OPA came back with a flawed plan.
“They did not talk about some obvious things, such as sub-metering in urban apartments, which could cut the need for electricity substantially.”
On the supply side, May said the OPA “did not consider the potential for offshore wind power generation in their calculations, for example.”
After the press conference, CCAMU members gathered outside the Peace Tower and unleashed a scroll containing a petition signed by 2500 people, which cascaded down the steps in front of the tower. The petition demands a moratorium on uranium mining. They then left Parliament Hill to bring the petition to Dalton McGuinty’s constituency office in Ottawa South.
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Letters - September 27, 2007Letters
September 27 Snimikobi Algonquin First Nation, Chief Randy Malcolm, Elders, Heads of FamilyRe: Mitchell Creek Bridge., Linda Penrose& Nancy BayleyITo mayor Maguire, Brian Garnier Snimikobi Algonquin First NationIt is with great pride and excitement that the Ardoch Algonquin First Nation presents to you our new Native name. We will be known as Snimikobi Algonquin First Nation.
This new name is the Algonquin name for the Mississippi River taken from (Pembroke, 31-F) historical files. It reflects our connection to this river and the vast population of people that comprise our group. We extend many kilometers from the Ardoch region and this encompasses a greater area.
For clarification, it is pronounced “Shnaw-Mik-Koba”. There is an even earlier definition, which literally meant “beaver creek”.
The vast majority of our members wanted this new name, which clears up any misunderstanding with regards to the AAFNA group, Ardoch Algonquin First Nation and Allies.
Our hope is to work closely with all parties in negotiations concerning the welfare and settlement of our rights, conservation of our lands, keeping open discussions alive between all sectors.
We are looking forward with great anticipation to the future for our children and our children’s children. Let them have a clearer path to follow than our ancestors experienced. We are only looking ahead. You cannot change the past, but you can greatly improve the journey forward.
Chief Randy Malcolm will guide our group with honesty and integrity. Our Elders will teach us many things along the way to make our passage clearer. With the many new members will come fresh ideas and a new perspective to our cause.
This we acknowledge to be true.
Chief Randy Malcolm, Elders, Heads of Family.
(submitted by Brenda Crawford, Harrowsmith)
Mitchell Creek Bridge: Have Council and the Ministry of Environment blown their commitments out of the water?Over the last three years, residents of South Frontenac Township have expressed ongoing concern about plans to upgrade the Mitchell Creek bridge on Canoe Lake Road. Our township council and Transport Canada promised us again and again - with maps and plans and mitigating conditions - that the new bridge would be built with a minimum of disruption while ensuring the highest safety and environmental standards. Less than one week into the actual construction work (begun mid-September), at least two major commitments are already out the window.
During the second week of August, the building inspector of South Frontenac Township informed two separate residents of Mitchell Creek that a foot bridge would be constructed alongside the new bridge so that school children and residents could easily make daily commutes.
Imagine our dismay on the morning of September 10 when residents attempting to cross Mitchell Creek were informed by the construction team that there was to be no foot bridge provided. School children were tumbled into a rowboat (without life jackets) and other residents were left scrambling to find boat transportation to cross the creek. At the very least, a courtesy letter should have been sent to each of us informing us that no foot bridge would be provided during active bridge construction.
Then on September 18, we were hit with another rude shock. Our clear, lovely creek – home to fish, turtles, frogs and an abundance of other wildlife – was suddenly obscured by a plume of suspended silt so dense that, for more than a hundred yards downstream from the construction, it was impossible to see more than a few inches into the water; this despite continual assurances from the proponents that the technology and means would be strictly applied to prevent such contamination or disruption of habitat.
Where is the promised safe river crossing for our school children and the minimum disruption for commuting members of our families? Where is the highest priority given to environmental protection? Do promises and commitments mean nothing now that bridge construction is under way?
As Mitchell Creek residents, we care about the safety and health of our community and the natural environment. We expect the Mayor, the Council, and Transport Canada to stand by all their agreements on upgrading the bridge.
- Lynda Penrose and Nancy Bayly, Hartington
To: Mayor MaguireYou may be unhappy with the small tax revolt (“North Frontenac takes a stand”, Frontenac News, Sept. 20, 2007] but this minor inconvenience will pale in comparison should a uranium mine be located in North and Central Frontenac.
One Example is the Sydney tar ponds on Cape Breton Island. After thirty-five years of struggle and litigation, most people were lucky to get 20 cents on the dollar for their property. Individuals simply dropped their keys on the front steps and left in frustration. They believed in others who promised better lives, but after all of their hard work, they left with less equity in their pockets, with health issues, broken families, and the "new" adventure of rebuilding their lives. The federal government has the tab. We the taxpayers are picking up the tab.
Example 2: the Deloro Mine northeast of Marmora. Gold mining commenced in the early 1900s, and gold was leached from ore with arsenic, the residue was held in a "tailing" pond, a large above ground swimming pool, with earthen berms or walls. The tailing pond at Deloro is 20 acres. In addition to arsenic contamination, radiation was detected, therefore traveling along Highway #7 when you see a chain link fence posted with an international icon for radioactivity on the north side, crossing a marsh, you’ll recognize you’re south of the Deloro Mine. In addition, the Moira River is contaminated. Therefore, Mayor, inquire about real estate values in the village and take notice of their reduced tax base. Federal government is presently slated $55 million for remediation. We, the taxpayers are picking up the tab.
http://www.portalonline.org/Kristy/Artof_deloro/story3.html
Example 3: Elliot Lake and the Denison Uranium Mine Debacle. (open pit)
http://www.sea-us.org.au/gulliver/rioalgom.html
Example 4: Uranium City Saskatchewan (open pit)
Example 5: The Ranger Uranium Mine in Australia. (in situ)
The process of "open pit" and in "situ" are two current extraction methods for mining Uranium. Open pit is as it sounds: dig a big hole, extract the ore, leach the uranium, and the residual goes into the "tailings" pond. The in "situ" or ISL is a sort of "see no evil, hear no evil". They drill holes into the ground, pump the leaching agent (sulphuric acid) down, extract the liquid, process the uranium from the liquid and the residual goes to "tailings” pond. Radon (radioactive) gas is released from both processes. Decontamination will be necessary, for personnel, equipment, and vehicles exiting the mining site.
There is an old saying in sailing "you don't know where you going, until you know where you've been". Your township, its aquifers, watersheds, and agricultural food chain will become toxic by definition, and what effect will this have on your tax base?
Frontenac Ventures Ltd. has (from articles I have read) professed that the mining standards have changed. They also admit that uranium commodities market value has increased. Mr. White was quoted as saying that the price was currently $136.00 US per lb. in June of 2007. The present spot price for uranium 308 is $90.00 US per pound. The long term pricing stability suggests $60.00 US. Mr. White suggests it is a viable venture at the current value of Uranium; but what happens to the mine if the price of Uranium drops below a viable level. Are we left with a large gaping hole, and unemployed workers with no pension and/or health benefits? Who gets the clean up costs? How does this impact tourism in the area, the health and well being of everyone down stream, down wind, and around the corner?
Is Mr. White interested in "ponying" up his, his children's and grandchildren's life savings as personal collateral to protect 600 employees and the constituency of Eastern Ontario?
The Deloro Mine issue was in litigation for forty years, and finally took a class action lawsuit to "resolve" 100 years of environmental decimation. People made money, but people lost lives.
In summary, you are an elected representative, representing "we, the people", and if they choose to withhold taxes in passive resistance, I wouldn't consider it "ransom", I 'd consider it just exercising their own due diligence. Therefore, recognize who is being held "ransom" here; it is all of us, and we’re negotiating with our health and future.
Brian Garnier, Arden
Candidates
Candidates Face the Publicby Jeff Green
Ross Sutherland, NDP; Randy Hiller, PC; Ian Wilson, Liberal; Rolly Montpellier, Green
A crowd of about 125 people filled the gym at Prince Charles Public School in Verona on an unseasonably warm night this week to hear from four candidates who hope to represent Lanark Frontenac Lennox and Addington after the provincial election on October 10.
Randy Hillier from the Conservative Party, Rolly Montpellier from the Green Party, Ross Sutherland from the New Democratic Party, and Ian Wilson from the Liberal Party faced questions about issues such as health care, education, and municipal downloading that have dominated the provincial campaign, and some local hot button issues such as uranium exploration, mining rights and the challenge of serving a geographically large riding.
True to the form they have exhibited throughout the campaign, the representatives from the two largest parties, Ian Wilson and Randy Hillier, presented their contrasting styles. Hillier described many of the problems facing the government as stemming from a Toronto-centred government that is controlled by a bloated bureaucracy.
“There isn’t a bureaucracy that can stand up to the pressure I can exert,” he said at one point.
Wilson presents himself as a more co-operative politician, bent on continuing the incremental reforms his party has been instituting over the past four years.
The largest single number of questions in the debate centred around health care, which is a topic where both Ross Sutherland, a nurse from Hotel Dieu Hospital, and Ian Wilson, the former chair of the Board at Kingston General Hospital, have considerable experience.
Sutherland characterized privatization of health care delivery under both the Liberal and Conservative parties as being a major source of service cuts, specifically in the area of rural homecare in Frontenac County.
Wilson, on the other hand, cited the development of the Local Health Integration Network, and infrastructure improvements that are coming on stream.
Randy Hillier used Kingston General Hospital as an example of bureaucratic overspending leading to insufficient services to patients. He pointed to the back page of the hospital’s annual report, which lists “KGH leaders”. Hiller said there are “Three hundred and seventy five members of various boards listed on this page. Three hundred and seven people run the Province of Ontario, but we need 375 people to run Kingston General Hospital. If we cut some of these people, there would be more money for rural health services.”
(About half of the people listed on the page Randy Hiller referred to are listed under the heading of “KGH Governors”, and that list includes MP Peter Milliken, former Provincial Conservative candidate Barry Gordon, Conservative senator Hugh Segal, and Kingston Mayor Harvey Rosen. Included as well are the 22 members of the hospital’s Board of Governors, and 19 members of the KGH Foundation.)
The liveliest of the evening’s exchanges revolved around uranium exploration and the ongoing occupation at the Robertsville mine.
Ian Wilson said he thought that mining rights should be extinguished in the riding as a solution to the problem, because it is not a use “that is consistent with the enjoyment of the land that we all cherish.” Both Ross Sutherland and Rolly Montpellier expressed support for the Aboriginal occupation, and both supported a moratorium on uranium exploration and mining, which is what the Algonquins are demanding.
Randy Hillier pointed out the municipal councils all want a moratorium on uranium exploration and mining, and said it is time the wishes of “local people are given more weight than those of people who don’t live in the area.”
However, he expressed strong opposition to the occupation, because it is on private land. “We can’t sit back as people take over other people’s property, people’s houses, people’s businesses,” he said.
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Feature Article - September 13, 2007Central Frontenac Calls for a Moratorium on Uranium Explorationby Jeff Green
Central Frontenac has joined with Lanark Highlands in asking the Province of Ontario to declare “an immediate moratorium on uranium mineral exploration and mining in eastern Ontario”.
The issue has been brought to the fore over the past few months by the Ardoch and Shabot Obaadjiwaan First Nations, and by a group called Concerned Citizens Against Uranium Mining (CCAMU). They are concerned that uranium exploration in Central and North Frontenac, and the unlikely possibility of uranium mining in Frontenac County represent an environmental threat to air and water quality in the county and downstream.
“When you consider how careful the government is in regards to our Official Plan, and the kinds of demands we make on people who want to do any kind of industrial work in our township, such as the concrete operation we talked about tonight, it is hard to understand that uranium exploration can be done without any regulation at all,” said Mayor Janet Gutowski in arguing for the motion.
Council also wants surface and subsurface rights to be united so that unwitting property owners would no longer be subject to mineral staking and exploration on their land without their permission.
Council approved the following motion: “That the Council of the Township of Central Frontenac petition the Province of Ontario to declare an immediate moratorium on Uranium Mineral Exploration and Mining so that issues related to “surface rights only”, the environment, health concerns related to uranium mining and native land claims can be addressed in a coordinated and comprehensive manner and further;
That the Province of Ontario proceed in a timely manner with a comprehensive Public Review of the Mining Act, including the combining of surface and mineral rights.”
Councillor Bob Harvey said that, “a big majority of people say that uranium is needed, and much of what people are saying about uranium is groundless.”
He was the only councillor who opposed the motion.
The Ontario Mining Act has been the subject of a recent review by the Minister’s Mining Act Advisory Committee, which has led to a package of reforms that have just cleared the Environmental Bill of Rights Process and is working its way to the Ontario Legislature.
It includes reforms to the way exploration companies must deal with surface rights owners but stops short of uniting surface and subsurface rights.
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Feature Article - September 6, 2007 Anti-uranium exploration activities entering a new phaseby Jeff Green
It has been more than interesting to watch the politics that have developed around uranium exploration in North and Central Frontenac over the past year.
It all started for us at the Frontenac News early in the summer of last year, when we received an email about a large number of mining stakes in Palmerston and Oso (the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines still uses pre-amalgamation boundaries).
It turned out that most of the claims were being staked for Frontenac Ventures Corporation, and just as had been the case in the 1980s and earlier, the mineral of interest was uranium.
A small item in the Frontenac News in mid-July (’06) brought little or no public response.
At the time the Ardoch Algonquins were heavily involved in cutting and clearing land for heir controversial Pow Wow grounds on Pine Lake. When informed about the staking, Ardoch co-chief Randy Cota just said, “It’ll never happen. We won’t let it. Those are Algonquin lands”
In the fall of last year, Gloria and Frank Morrison found out that their property had been staked, and they began to research and publicize their concerns about the issue of surface and subsurface mineral rights.
Three concurrent issues were coming together: uranium exploration, surface/subsurface rights, and Algonquin territorial claims.
Frank and Gloria Morrison were not the first people in recent years to find their property has been staked against their wishes, but they showed tremendous zeal in fighting their predicament, bringing it to the attention of he national media
Gloria was a lead interview on As It Happens in February this year, leading the program to a week-long exposition on mining rights on private lands. Frank was the subject of a feature article in the Ottawa Citizen and a five-minute news report on CBC Ottawa television later on.
On Good Friday, a group of property owners from the Snow Road area called a public meeting to discuss mineral staking in the area, and to begin talking about the impacts of uranium exploration, and uranium mining on the surrounding region.
People at that meeting included two members of the Shabot Obaadjiwaan First Nation, several township mayors and councillors from the surrounding region, PC provincial candidate Randy Hillier, and Mark Burnham, the chair of the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority.
Meanwhile, Frontenac Ventures Corporation had begun their program of exploration for 2007. A series of data-gathering flights over the 30,000 acres of claims the company has secured took place in April and May. Work also progressed, using Gemmil’s Construction from Snow Road, on widening an access road from the Robertsville mine and Crotch Lake, and hiring, including local hiring, was taking place.
The company was looking to secure a drill, and by early June plans to commence a $2 million, two-year core drilling program were made. Their intention, in the short term, was to duplicate core-drilling results from the 1970s, which would enable them to take their claim public by listing it on the Toronto Stock Exhange this October.
Meanwhile, the Ardoch Algonquins had been discussing the situation at their monthly meetings, and began talking with the members of an anti-uranium group that was being formed at the time. They were also forging an alliance with the Shabot Obaadjiwaan First Nation over a joint response. This alliance represents a big change in the relationship between the leadership of the two communities, which have been dominated for years by a profound disagreement over the conduct of land claims negotiations.
In early June, the Ardoch Algonquins sent a letter to Frontenac Ventures Corporation, telling the company to leave their leased headquarters at the Robertsville mine by June 28. In effect, the letter constituted an assertion of sovereignty over the mine, which is a privately held parcel of land, and over the 30,000 acres for which Frontenac Ventures possess mineral rights.
Frontenac Ventures Corporation, in consultation with the OPP, decided to vacate the premises before the 28th.
At the time, company President George White was under the impression that he was merely keeping his people away from the site during the Aboriginal days of protest, and they would be returning after the July 1st long weekend.
But the Ardoch Algonquins had no intention of leaving, and when they arrived at the Robertsville Mine on June 28, they were joined by Chief Doreen Davis and other members of the Shabot Obaadjiwaan First Nation, and non-aboriginal anti-uranium activists who were prepared to take a supporting role for an occupation that will be ten weeks old this Thursday.
Their intention was clear; they were committed to stopping uranium exploration on what they consider their traditional lands.
Phase 2 Frontenac Ventures seeks relief from the courts
Soon after the beginning of the Algonquin occupation of the Robertsville mine two things became clear: the Ardoch and Shabot Obaadjiwaan Algonquins were united, and the OPP was not interested in stopping the occupation.
The OPP attitude surprised Frontenac Ventures Corporation and Peter Jorgensen, the owner of the mine, who found he had no access to his own property.
The Algonquins were equally surprised. On Tuesday morning, July 3, the first business day after the beginning of the occupation, all of the children that had been on site during the weekend were gone. A dozen warriors, some of them from other First Nations, decked out in bandanas and camouflage, took up a line at the edge of Highway 509, as a show of force against any attempts by the police to infiltrate.
The OPP, who at that time and since have maintained a visible presence, with four vehicles located along Road 509, never approached.
Two weeks later, Frontenac Ventures met with members of the two First Nations and the non-aboriginal anti-uranium activists to begin consultations.
Lawyers for the Algonquins and the company wrangled over what “meaningful consultation” is. A week later, Frontenac Ventures levied a $77 million lawsuit against the two communities, and persons un-named. The suit now includes the Province of Ontario.
When the suit was brought to court a few days later, on July 30, a three-day hearing took place on a motion to adjourn. On August 15, Judge Thomson ordered all parties off the land until a formal hearing on a company motion for an interim injunction could be set up.
The Algonquins did not leave, and the OPP did not act to make them leave.
A further meeting with Judge Thomson took place on August 23. The Algonquins had already said they would no longer participate in the injunction proceedings, calling the situation a political matter that should be addressed by the provincial government and not the courts. The OPP lawyer was non-committal when Thomson asked why the force had not acted. He implied that the order did not clearly stipulate what they must do.
On August 27, Judge Thomson released a new order, this time ordering all protestors off the land, granting “unfettered access” to the company, and authorizing the police to act.
On the morning of August 31, Provincial Ministers Rick Bartollucci (Mines and Niorthern Development) and David Ramsay (Natural Resources and Aboriginal Affairs) finally responded to a request for a meeting that had been sent to them by the Algonquins on June 14. The letter offered to continue consultation between the communities and Mines and Northern Development, saying meetings could begin as soon as September 10. On the afternoon of Friday, August 31, Judge Thomson’s order was formally served.
What Now?
Everyone is waiting for the OPP to decide on their next course of action. They could arrest everyone at the site in the next few days, risking confrontation and the arrival of outside activists, both aboriginal and non-aboriginal
All of the people on site thus far have made a commitment to non-violence, but the Algonquin leaders have said they cannot control people that may come to the scene later on.
The OPP may also ask all of the protesters to leave, but stop short of arresting anyone, perhaps incurring the wrath of the courts.
They could also seize on the decision of the provincial government to meet with the Algonquins for the first time, and say they don’t want to jeopardise that process by acting.
This would undoubtedly lead Frontenac Ventures Corporation to ask that the OPP be charged with contempt of court for not enforcing a judge’s order.
Then again, the company may have done so already.
The protesters at the Robertsville mine have now forged a firm three-way alliance. They are all anti-uranium activists, aboriginal and settler alike. They have different pasts, but they share a common cause and a may share a common fate.
There is another group of people who have had no voice throughout this process: those in the community who support the mining exploration, either for reasons of their own interest or because they see at as something that could bring benefits and would not likely bring environmental harm. They have remained quiet throughout the past two months, fearing perhaps they would be labelled anti-environmental or anti-aboriginal. The tension felt by some of these people has surfaced a few times over the summer and in recent days.
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Letters - October 18, 2007Letters
October 11 Why There Shouldn't be a Uranium Mine, Devin Kohl Why There Shouldn't be a Uranium MineWhen Frontenac Ventures staked a claim on the land for a uranium mine near Sharbot Lake, it started a major protest on the site. This made me think about the impacts it would have on the community. I believe there shouldn’t be a uranium mine in our community or in any community because: it creates conflict in the community; it harms people’s health; it contaminates the environment and there are alternative energy sources that we need to develop that are not harmful.
If anyone has read a newspaper in the last few weeks, they would have realized that the uranium mine has caused a lot of conflict in local communities. Two months ago the mining company called Frontenac Ventures staked a claim on crown land. The conflict is that the Algonquin people claim it’s their land and the company has no right to be there. It’s become a huge battle because many people are helping the Algonquin to protest the mine. The Algonquin don’t want the mine there because they are worried that it will harm people’s health and contaminate the land and water.
It’s good to know a bit about uranium mining in order to understand why people are concerned. Uranium ore is dug from the ground in open pit mines, and then shipped to where it is going to be processed and used in nuclear reactors to make energy and in nuclear weapons. Uranium mining is one of the most dangerous kinds of mining there is. It’s dangerous because the uranium is radioactive and can escape into the air, water and soil and it takes millions of years to break down and become non harmful.
Atomic radiation can cause serious health issues such as severe burns, anemia, cataracts, cancer, leukemia, damage to unborn babies, and damage to the human reproductive system. From the mining of the uranium to the manufacturing of nuclear power and nuclear weapons, workers are at great risk of being exposed to radiation.
One of the most dangerous parts of the uranium mining process is the leftover waste called tailings. The tailings are the large amounts of excess pulverized rock that are separated from the uranium ore. It takes about one ton of ore to get two pounds of uranium. The tailings contain 85% of the original radioactivity of the ore. In Canada we have over 150 000 000 tons of tailings, most of it exposed to the wind and rain. Radioactive tailings can leach into the water and get released into the air. When it’s airborne, it can travel 1 000 miles in a few days with a light breeze.
There are other ways to get energy instead of using uranium or nuclear power that harms the environment and people’s health. The other ways you can get energy without harming the environment are by conserving energy, energy efficiency and using hydro, wind and solar power.
Now remember, uranium mining and nuclear energy can create conflict in communities, can harm people’s health, and can contaminate the environment. There are alternative energy sources that don’t cause these problems. We should use these instead!
- Devin Kohl, Grade 8, Perth
Dilman
Starving for Changeby Jeff Green
Donna
Dillman is a Lanark Highlands-based grandmother and political activist
who has become heavily involved in the anti-uranium protest at the
Robertsville mine. The protest has been focused around a blockade of
the headquarters of the exploration company Frontenac Ventures
Corporation.
She spent a considerable amount of time at the protest site during the summer, but it was when she visited Elliot Lake during a book tour with her husband, Mike Nickerson, that the potential implications of uranium exploration hit home for her in a profound way.
"There are 140 million tons of radioactive tailings at Elliott Lake, that's a mass of material that needs to be contained forever. I don't think that should be repeated," Donna Dillman said on Monday from outside the gate at the Robertsville mine.
She decided late in the summer to start a hunger strike to help convince the Ontario government that a moratorium on uranium mining should be declared in Eastern Ontario. "I would have started it earlier, but I had some other obligations to attend to," she said.
As October arrived, and Thanksgiving was coming up, she decided to begin on Thanksgiving Day, October 8. In an interesting twist, her protest is beginning as the two Algonquin communities are considering the possibility of ending their occupation of the mine.
She will be subsisting on a brew of maple syrup, lemons and cayenne in a hot water base, fresh fruit and vegetable juices, and clean water. Part of the symbolism of the hunger strike is to demonstrate, in a direct, physical way, that it is possible to survive without solid food for a considerable amount of time, but water is essential. "The implications of drilling for uranium on the watershed are a real concern for me, and for everyone. We all need water to survive," Dillman said.
One practical part of the hunger strike that concerns Donna Dillman is warmth. "My fear is the cold rather than hunger. Without food I will not be able to stay warm easily, and the weather is going to get colder."
Fortunately a tent trailer has been donated for the duration of her fast, and a kerosene heater is being provided as well.
Donna Dillman intends to stay outside the gate at the Robertsville mine indefinitely. Her tent is set up on the township road allowance, off to the side of the entrance to the mine, so she will not be blocking anyone entering or leaving the site.
"The only time I am planning to leave is for a Green Party meeting in November."
Donna Dillman was recently elected as an at-large member to the Green Party National Council.
