{"id":667712,"date":"2026-05-13T23:34:15","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T23:34:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/667712\/"},"modified":"2026-05-13T23:34:15","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T23:34:15","slug":"n-b-proposes-streamlined-approval-process-for-mining-projects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/667712\/","title":{"rendered":"N.B. proposes ‘streamlined’ approval process for mining projects"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Text<\/p>\n

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Estimated 4 minutes<\/p>\n

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New Brunswick has proposed a new mining law, which the government says is partly aimed at faster project approvals. <\/p>\n

But Natural Resources Minister John Herron said the bill tabled Wednesday would also strengthen environmental protections and boost engagement with First Nations during that approval process.<\/p>\n

Speaking with reporters at the legislature, Herron said regulations to come later would offer more detail on how the bill would achieve those things.<\/p>\n

“We want to test those project proponents at every corner, but we want to do it faster,” Herron said. “If you don\u2019t have that, you risk losing social licence. That\u2019s a key element.”<\/p>\n

WATCH | Minister wants to test project proponents \u2018at every corner,\u2019 but faster:\"\"<\/p>\n

Minister says new mining law would get projects approved faster in N.B.<\/p>\n

The New Brunswick natural resources minister says the \u201cstreamlined\u201d project approval process wouldn\u2019t come at the cost of public consultation or environmental impact assessment.<\/p>\n

Herron added the process would look different, depending on the mining project. <\/p>\n

“If you’re restarting a pre-existing mine \u2026 the level of of consultation and engagement may not have to be as robust because there’s already a high degree of understanding in terms of what that opportunity is,” Herron said. <\/p>\n

He cited former mine sites in Mount Pleasant and Lake George as examples of where this might apply.<\/p>\n

The bill comes after Prime Minister Mark Carney designated the long-delayed Sisson Mine as a major project<\/a> \u2014 a status that carries added federal support, such as funding and faster approvals.<\/p>\n

\"AGlen Savoie, the interim PC leader, said he worries about government cutting corners with a faster approval process. (Tara King-Stewart\/CBC)<\/p>\n

Ultimately, Herron said the goal is to position New Brunswick to become Canada’s top mining jurisdiction.<\/p>\n

But Glen Savoie, the Progressive Conservative interim leader, questioned whether the bill would deliver on Herron’s promises, calling it “aspirational” while speaking to reporters.<\/p>\n

“I hear government talk about speeding up things \u2026 my concerns lie with this government’s ability to manage their way through this without taking shortcuts on either side,” Savoie said. <\/p>\n

“So whether it’s environmental shortcuts, whether it’s consultation shortcuts, whatever that means for this government \u2026 does it mean that’s to the detriment of other important factors during the process?” <\/p>\n

\"DavidGreen Party Leader David Coon said the bill’s purpose is contradictory. (CBC News)<\/p>\n

Herron said Indigenous communities did not see the bill in advance of government tabling it, which Savoie said confirms his concerns.<\/p>\n

But Herron said First Nations leaders will have the chance to provide input on the regulations to be drafted in the coming year.<\/p>\n

Green Party Leader David Coon wasn’t convinced by the bill’s dual promise to strengthen environmental protections and competitiveness for the mining sector, calling it an “inherent contradiction.”<\/p>\n

Coon noted the Sisson Mine project as an example. <\/p>\n

“Sisson could be far more sustainable if it were developed with dry stack storage for the tailings, rather than submerging them under a massive … artificial water body behind a huge dam,” he said.<\/p>\n

\"HeadshotPrime Minister Mark Carney designated the Sisson Mine as a so-called nation-building project last year. (Pratyush Dayal\/CBC)<\/p>\n

“But it’s more expensive to do that, so it makes it less competitive to do the right thing.” <\/p>\n

Robert Murray, president of the New Brunswick Prospectors and Developers Association, is optimistic for the future of the industry in the province.<\/p>\n

\"TwoRobert Murray, left, president of the New Brunswick Prospectors and Developers Association, hopes the bill will make the province a more predictable environment for project proponents. (Savannah Awde\/CBC)<\/p>\n

Murray said his experience as a prospector trying to attract mining companies to New Brunswick has changed dramatically over the past few years. <\/p>\n

“In the past \u2026 it was really difficult to talk about New Brunswick to mid-tier to upper mining companies, and to get any kind of traction with them,” Murray said outside the legislature Wednesday.<\/p>\n

“In the last few years, that’s totally changed.”<\/p>\n

He hopes the bill will ultimately make New Brunswick a more predictable environment for interested mining companies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to this article Estimated 4 minutes The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":667713,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[49,48,295,66],"class_list":["post-667712","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-environment","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/667712","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=667712"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/667712\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/667713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=667712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=667712"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=667712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}