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Prime Minister Mark Carney and Premier Doug Ford arrive to attend a press conference on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Thursday.Blair Gable/Reuters
Prime Minister Mark Carney says access to Canada’s critical minerals is not assured for the United States, as he touted a new agreement with Ontario to streamline how mines and other major projects are approved, including in the province’s remote Ring of Fire region.
Mr. Carney, appearing with Ontario Premier Doug Ford at an announcement in Ottawa on Thursday, said the new agreement will bring a one-project, one-review and one-decision approach to major infrastructure projects in the province.
That includes potential mining opportunities in the Ring of Fire, about 500 kilometres north of Thunder Bay. Mr. Ford has pushed to extract critical minerals from the Ring of Fire for years. Recently, his government has pitched the Ring of Fire as an economic imperative in the face of U.S. tariffs.
Mr. Carney on Thursday said there are many opportunities to grow the Canadian and U.S. economies together, citing emerging strategic sectors such as critical minerals in the Ring of Fire.
Carney says U.S.-Canada trade deal unlikely to happen in near future
“That is an opportunity first and foremost for the people of Ontario, including Indigenous Peoples,” Mr. Carney said.
“It’s an opportunity for Canada. It’s a potential opportunity for the United States, but it’s not an assured opportunity for the United States. It’s part of a bigger discussion in terms of our trading relationship, because we have other partners around the world, in Europe for example, who are very interested in participating in those value chains.”
Canada has a list of 31 minerals it currently considers to be “critical,” including lithium, graphite, nickel, cobalt, copper and rare earth elements.
Mr. Ford called the new agreement “transformational” and said it will give certainty to investors and project proponents.
“It’s time for Canada to build big things again, and nowhere will the impact of this deal be felt more immediately than in the development of the Ring of Fire,” Mr. Ford said, adding the deal will “unlock” Ontario’s vast critical mineral reserve.
Ottawa and Ontario finalized a deal Thursday that will reduce the regulatory burden on large projects, including the road to the Ring of Fire.
The Canadian Press
The arrangement allows Ottawa to defer to provincial processes for environmental assessments and Indigenous consultations for major projects that fall under the purview of its Impact Assessment Act, with an eye to reduce duplication.
It also includes a Nov. 24 letter sent to the Ontario government by the head of the federal Impact Assessment Agency of Canada that says it could wrap up its reviews of segments of the proposed Ring of Fire road by June, 2026, and allow some preliminary work to start, three years earlier than Queen’s Park had expected.
Two small First Nations near the Ring of Fire – Marten Falls and Webequie – have signed co-operation agreements with Ontario and support the project. They have led the years-long environmental assessments for segments of the road themselves.
But some First Nations and environmental groups have criticized the agreement.
Ontario Regional Chief Abram Benedict said it “prioritizes streamlining approvals while sidelining First Nations’ inherent jurisdiction and weakening the duty to consult.”
“Projects that affect our lands must be built on partnership, not exclusion,” he said in a statement.
Northern Ontario chiefs step up demands for consultation in resource projects
Wildlands League, a conservation organization, said this week that Ontario has “gutted” its species-at-risk legislation, and said they have serious concerns about the province’s approach to environmental protections.
Even with the new agreement, Mr. Ford said he would not rule out using the new powers his government has granted itself in legislation known as Bill 5. The law, similar to Mr. Carney’s legislation for fast-tracking infrastructure known as Bill C-5, sparked condemnation from First Nations when it was passed earlier this year.
Ontario’s law allows the province to designate temporary “special economic zones,” where it could suspend any provincial or municipal law to speed up a project.
Asked by reporters if he’s comfortable with suspending Ontario’s environmental processes for projects that may land in a special economic zone, Mr. Carney said the federal government retains responsibilities for environmental protections in areas such as fish habitation and migratory birds. He said Ottawa is also responsible for Indigenous consultations under section 35 of the Constitution, which recognizes and affirms Aboriginal rights.
The Prime Minister also met virtually with the country’s premiers later on Thursday, with Mr. Ford attending the meeting in person. Mr. Ford said the premiers had a “great conversation” with the Prime Minister who updated them on trade talks with the U.S. “We have to be prepared for everything,” Mr. Ford said on his way out of the meeting.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith also thought the meeting went well, and that Mr. Carney “provided useful updates regarding ongoing international trade negotiations,” according to her spokesperson, Sam Blackett.
With reports from Ian Bailey
