The deadline is looming for the introduction of proposed regulatory changes to the process of staking a mineral claim in B.C.— changes that could affect the whole mineral exploration industry.
But a government draft, introducing a court-ordered initial consultation process that prospectors and mineral explorers must now go through, is not being endorsed by the association that represents those exploring for the mines of tomorrow. And so it is being tweaked while the March 26 deadline looms.
The Association for Mineral Exploration (AME) represents 5,000 members in B.C., including prospectors, junior mining companies, mine operators, equipment suppliers — the whole sector.
“Of all of the mines operating in B.C. today, they were all discovered by prospectors or junior mining companies, or other people that we represent,” said Richard Truman, Senior Director for External Affairs for the AME.
Truman and Jack Middleton of the AME were in Cranbrook recently to meet with association and East Kootenay Chamber of Mines members, to discuss the current draft Mineral Claims Consultation Framework (MCCF) that has been proposed by the provincial government. “To talk through some of their concerns, to make sure they can do their work to discover future mines,” Truman said.
In 2023, a Supreme Court of British Columbia case — Gitxaala v. British Columbia (Chief Gold Commissioner — ruled that the province must consult with Indigenous Peoples before granting mineral claims. The case challenged the province's free-entry system for mineral claims, which allowed miners to register claims without consulting First Nations.
The Ministry of Mining and Critical Minerals only released a draft of the MCCF in January. The court-imposed deadline to implement it is March 26, 2025.
“Someone doing a bit of desktop research, thinking there could be some useful minerals here,” Truman said. “The very first thing they do is go stake a claim. Back in the day, they would literally show up with a stake, whack the stake into the ground and put a plate on it to stake that claim. These days that process happens online.”
Middleton said that the AME and its members accept the court decision and the inclusion of an initial narrow consultation into the process.
“We know that it needs to happen. Consultation is important, and it needs to happen by March 26. But there is a whole host of issues. The concern is that if we don’t get this right, if we’re not able to have members staking claims, it’s going to drive away investment in the economy. For mineral exploration, but also mining.”
For these and other reasons, the AME has chosen not to endorse the initial draft. It believes the way it is now will negatively impact AME members’ ability to stake mineral claims in a timely and commercially viable manner.
“We’ve seen some positive things in the process,” Middleton said. “But there are other things that are really concerning.”
“We have to take government at their word that they’re going to do the best consultation they can, and accommodate Nations. But this is about the impacts of confirming a mineral claim. It’s not consulting on a mine being built. It’s about that earliest stage.”
Middleton added that the new consultation process doesn’t give a First Nation final approval on a project. They can register their dissent against a project, or their support, and that would be factored into the provincial government’s decision.
“What really concerns the [AME] members is how fast this process will move, if there are going to be blocks to projects.”
“Once you stake a mineral claim, you’re actually very limited in what you’re allowed to do, before you have to apply for further permitting,” Truman said. “If you stake a claim on a particular area, you can walk around on that area, you can camp out on that area, you can do some very basic sampling, that’s not invasive at all. But you can’t do anything with any machines.
“If you want to do anything mechanical, if you want to take your project to the next step, you have to apply for that next stage of permits, called a Notice of Work. At that stage, already, there is a consultation process for First Nations. That will stay the same.
“With the new process, you apply for your claim, rather than just being granted a claim instantly. But what you’re granted at the end of that process is still the same. You will still only be able to do that really limited level of activity before you have to go apply for the next stage, the Notice of Work.”
The Ministry of Mining and Critical Minerals only released a draft of the MCCF in January. The deadline to implement, set by the court, it is March 26, 2025. If the consultation mechanism isn’t in place by then, a moratorium could be placed on the whole process of staking a claim.
“The East Kootenay Chamber of Mines and its membership are deeply concerned about this,” Truman said. “This will affect people’s livelihoods. A lot of these exploration companies are really small, they don’t have huge budgets, they are mom-and-pop shops and family businesses.
“We expect bigger companies will be able to sustain the volatility created by this thing. But we’re really concerned about local businesses. So we want to come out here, hear what they have to say, and take their concerns back to government.”
AME is still concerned about a functional process being implemented by deadline, but continues to advocate for its members. “We expect the process to be introduced by then. We don’t want a stop put on what the members are doing,” Middleton said.
The mineral exploration industry is a huge contributor to local economies. Of all the mineral exploration investment money that comes into B.C., more than 90 per cent gets spent in B.C. it makes a big difference to these businesses.
“One of the concerns we hear from our members is that whenever you introduce any uncertainty, Investors do not like that. If we’ve got a good clear process that people understand, that’s really good at helping to attract investment. You add in a level or two of uncertainty, it’s a real concern that that will drive investment elsewhere.”
Not every mineral claim staked or mineral exploration project will become a mine. But nonetheless, critical minerals — such as copper, lithium, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements are essential components of many of today's rapidly growing energy technologies. And the future need for them is going to be even higher.
“If you look at the future demand for copper, for example for electric cars, say,” Truman said. “The future demand for copper is more than all copper that has been mined in the past.
“If we’re going to do all these electrification things, we’re going to need a lot more exploration. We know that all the operating mines in BC have been found either by prospectors or by junior mining companies. That’s going to continue. So we need this mineral exploration.”
There’s lot at stake, indeed, But there is still time.
“What the ministry has published so far is a draft, and they have until March 26 to implement it,” Truman said. “So there is a little bit of time to make potential tweaks to it, to make sure it works for members.”
