Federal Court allows judicial review of Rocky Mountain coal mine denied by panel

A Federal Court ruling Tuesday has thrown out a decision from federal Environmental Minister Steven Guilbeault denying a permit for an open-pit coal mine in the Alberta Rockies.

The ruling, which comes in response to two Alberta First Nations, will force Guilbeault to revisit the issue after consulting with the bands on the economic benefits of the proposed mine.

The company hoping to develop the mine, Benga Mining, also requested the decision be reviewed. It was denied.

The court ruled that the Piikani and Stoney First Nations never received a consultation opportunity they had been promised by the federal-provincial panel that reviewed Benga’s application.

In his ruling, Judge Richard Southcott said the joint federal-provincial review panel that examined the Grassy Mountain proposal near Crowsnest Pass didn’t live up to the consultation promises it made.

Southcott said the review panel released its report and delivered it to Guilbeault on June 17, 2021. In a news release that day, the panel promised that both First Nations would be consulted again before the minister delivered his decision.

However, about five weeks later, the panel issued a final report to the minister, stating that consultation was complete.

“This report stated that the (federal Impact Assessment) Agency considered the consultation process conducted to date to be reasonable and properly implemented, and that affected Indigenous communities were given sufficient opportunity to express their views and share concerns throughout the process,” Southcott wrote.

But he said that deprived the First Nations of the opportunity they had been promised to present arguments on the impact and benefit agreements they had reached with Benga.

“In my view, the representation in