The president of the Tahltan Central Government, Kerry Carlick, voiced strong support for maintaining British Columbia’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA), emphasizing the need to uphold and even strengthen the legislation. Carlick’s comments came during a significant event in Vancouver, where he and deputy premier Niki Sharma signed an agreement to jointly receive mineral tax revenue from the Eskay Creek mine.
This ceremony marked a milestone as the provincial government recently granted an environmental assessment certificate to Eskay Creek Mining Ltd. for the resumption of gold and silver mining in northwestern B.C. The assessment process was notably conducted collaboratively with the Tahltan First Nation under the framework of DRIPA.
While the provincial government plans to amend DRIPA in response to recent court rulings on Aboriginal title, Sharma reassured that the proposed changes aim to enhance the act’s effectiveness without diminishing its core principles. The focus is on leveraging the full potential of DRIPA while avoiding legal disputes.