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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Wheaton River Minerals Ltd.
Ian J. McDonald
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
(416) 860-0919
NEWS RELEASE TRANSMITTED BY CANADIAN CORPORATE NEWS
FOR: WHEATON RIVER MINERALS LTD.
TSE SYMBOL: WRM
APRIL 9, 1997
Wheaton River Minerals Ltd. - Illegal Blockade at Golden
Bear
TORONTO, ONTARIO--Wheaton River Minerals Ltd. and North American
Metals Corp. announce that the private access road to the Golden
Bear mine in northwestern British Columbia has been subjected to
an illegal blockade by the Tahltan First Nation Band based in
nearby Telegraph Creek. The road, constructed by North American
Metals in 1989 at a cost of $21 million, is governed by a B.C.
Forestry Special Use permit and is situated on Crown Land.
Wheaton River, through its subsidiary North American Metals, plans
to complete construction and resume production at the Golden Bear
heap leach mine commencing in May 1997. The project is fully
permitted and meets or exceeds all environmental regulations in
the Province of British Columbia where such regulations are
considered to be some of the strictest in the world. During the
month of March large quantities of supplies and equipment were
mobilized and transported to the minesite. A five year mining
contract was recently awarded to Pelly Construction of Whitehorse
over a number of other bidders. One of these was a joint bid by
the Tahltan Nation Development Corporation and Stewart
Construction, which was not selected after due consideration.
On April 7th, 1997, the Companies received a Tahltan Joint Council
Declaration stating that the "Tahltan First Nation rights have
been repeatedly violated by the lack of consultation, information
sharing and cooperation on the part of North American Metals."
The Joint Councils are demanding an agreement with North American
Metals that will include:
/T/
- Right of first refusal
- Employment equity
- Long-term training
- Protocol and consultation agreements
- Environmental / technical monitoring
- Reclamation and closure agreements
- Renovation of existing construction and road maintenance
agreements
/T/
The Companies are willing to negotiate all of the above items with
the exception of Right of First Refusal, and the reclamation and
closure agreements which are already in place with the British
Columbia government.
Company policy has always been to encourage the Tahltan First
Nation to bid on contracts, and a number have been awarded to them
in the past. The Tahltans currently have the maintenance contract
on the road they are blockading. As they have in the past, the
Companies also intend to ensure that a significant proportion of
jobs at the site, approximately 30 percent, are available to
members of the Tahltan First Nation.
The Companies have informed the Tahltan First Nation of its
planned activities on numerous occasions, and received little
comment until this time. On Friday, April 4th, four senior
personnel from the Companies travelled to Telegraph Creek for a
meeting, at the invitation of the Band Council. When they arrived
they were not allowed to participate in the meeting.
Wheaton River and North American Metals are seeking an injunction
to remove the blockade immediately through the British Columbia
Supreme Court. Discussions with the Tahltan First Nation are
continuing.
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