Ktunaxa Nation Disappointed with B.C. Supreme Court Ruling
August 21, 2018
ʔa·kisk̓aqǂiʔit /Cranbrook– The Ktunaxa Nation is deeply disappointed in the B.C. Supreme
Court’s August 17, 2018 ruling which found unreasonable the former Minister of Environment’s
decision terminating an environmental assessment certificate for a ski resort proposed to be
located at an area sacred to the Ktunaxa.
“While our concerns about the proposed ski resort’s profound negative impacts to Ktunaxa
spirituality, culture and identity remain paramount for us,” said Kathryn Teneese, Ktunaxa
Nation Council Chair, “the court’s decision should concern all British Columbians given its
potentially negative consequences for the environmental assessment process.”
“We also note that this court decision is not a green light for the project to proceed. The court
merely asked the current minister to re-consider Minister Polak’s 2015 decision with more
attention to ‘mitigating circumstances’.”
The decision under court review was the June 18, 2015 termination of the Jumbo Glacier Ski
Resort’s EA certificate because the project had not been substantially started by October 12,
2014, a date identified in the certificate. The court said that the Minister had not adequately
considered factors other than what the proponent had built on the ground.
Unless the Province appeals the court’s decision, the present Minister of Environment, George
Heyman, must reconsider whether the project had been substantially started by the October
12, 2014 deadline. If so, the proponent may be able to build a large ski resort in Qat’muk, an
area of profound spiritual and cultural significance for Ktunaxa citizens. Given the importance
of the Minister’s decision, the Ktunaxa Nation looks forward to providing meaningful input, as it
did when the first no substantial start decision was made in 2015.
“The irony of the situation is not lost on us,” Ms. Teneese commented. “In the past, the courts
went to great lengths to try to justify the Province’s failure to even consider the Ktunaxa right to
freedom of religion under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms regarding this ski resort. For the
developer, however, the court was more than willing to cancel the Province’s decision because
something wasn’t apparently adequately addressed in the Province’s decision.”
Ms. Teneese added that the Ktunaxa remain adamantly opposed to construction of a ski resort
at Qat’muk and will continue to work to protect the cultural, spiritual and environmental values
of the area.
The Ktunaxa Nation Council will not be providing further comment on this matter.
Background:
Qat’muk is where the Grizzly Bear Spirit was born, goes to heal itself, and returns to the
spirit world. For Ktunaxa, Grizzly Bear Spirit is a unique and indispensable source of
collective as well as individual guidance, strength, and protection, and a necessary part
of many Ktunaxa spiritual practices and beliefs. Qat’muk’s spiritual importance is deeply
connected to its biological significance for living grizzly bears now and in the future.
