WWF-Canada applauds Government of Canada decision to reject Baffinland mine expansion in Nunavut

Nunavut Impact Review Board warned the negative impacts to wildlife and Inuit could not be “adequately prevented, mitigated, or adaptively managed”

NOVEMBER 16, 2022 – WWF-Canada commends Hon. Dan Vandal, Minister of Northern Affairs, and the Government of Canada for accepting the Nunavut Impact Review Board’s recommendation to not approve Baffinland’s proposed massive expansion of their Mary River iron mine on Baffin Island.

As clearly documented by Pond Inlet residents during the environmental assessment agency’s extensive public hearings on the mine’s “Phase 2” expansion, current operations are already having a serious impact on narwhal, fish and seal. These are species that Inuit depend upon for their livelihoods, food security and cultural continuity — and for which they have a constitutional treaty right to harvest.

Yet Baffinland still sought to double its current level of production from the temporary annual limit of 6 million tonnes to 12 million tonnes, despite opposition from Inuit organizations at all levels, including the Mittimatalik Hunters and Trappers Organization, Qikiqtani Inuit Association and Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated.

WWF-Canada applauds the federal government for listening to the facts and respecting the clear wishes of Inuit.