13 January 2017
Vancouver, BC – Sabina Gold & Silver Corp (SBB.T), (“Sabina” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that the Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (“INAC”), with the agreement of other responsible ministers, has decided that the Back River Project (“Back River” or the “Project”) should be returned to the Nunavut Impact Review Board (“NIRB”) for further consideration under Section 12.5.7 (e) of the Nunavut Agreement.
On June 15, 2016, the NIRB recommended to the Minister of INAC that the Back River Project not proceed to the next phase of permitting at this time. Since that time, the Minister of INAC and the other responsible ministers have been considering the NIRB Report.
In her letter of January 12, 2017 to the NIRB, the Minister of INAC stated “After careful consideration…we are referring the Report back to the Board for further review or public hearings as the Report is deficient with respect to some ecosystemic issues. In our view, based on the process to date, it is premature to conclude that the Project would lead to unacceptable or unmanageable ecosystemic or socioeconomic impacts. There were a number of areas where there was insufficient information presented in the [NIRB] Report to support the conclusions of the Board, and where further information is required so that the ministers may understand the rationale behind the conclusions presented by the Board prior to making a decision on whether the project should proceed. This is particularly important in areas where the Board has expressed a lack of confidence or significant uncertainty while the Report and the broader record indicates that many of the participants (including Indigenous and non-Indigenous witnesses and subject matter experts) expressed confidence that the measures presented could mitigate and manage potential adverse effects to an acceptable level. A deeper inquiry into the issues identified by the Board might point to sound management approaches.”
With respect to caribou, the Minister of INAC referred to the jointly proposed terms and conditions for caribou submitted by Sabina, the Kitikmeot Inuit Association (“KIA”) and the Government of Nunavut and recommended further in-depth review of that submission to provide an opportunity for the Board and others to clearly understand the effectiveness of the proposed measures.
A link to a copy of the letter can be found here:
http://www.sabinagoldsilver.com/assets/docs/media/Minister-Ltr-to-NIRB-Re-Final-HearingReport.pdf
Sabina has received broad based Inuit support for the Project both at the final hearings in April and since the NIRB Report in mid-June. Written letters to the Minister on behalf of Sabina and the Project have been received from the KIA (the land owner) Hamlet Councils, Hunters and Trappers Organizations, community representatives, as well as the Government of Nunavut.
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