Alexco Resource Corporation
Case Study #2: The Raglan Mine
Raglan mine lies about 1,800 km north of Montreal, deep in the Nunavik territory of northern Quebec. Nunavik is sparsely populated, with approximately 10,000 residents living in 14 communities. The two communities closest to Raglan are Salluit (1,000 residents) and Kangiqsujuaq (550 residents). The nickel/copper mine property lies 60 km west of Kangiqsujuaq (Wakeham Bay) and extends about 55 km. (See map. 1)
Raglan oreOre: the naturally-occurring material (rock) from which minerals are extracted through breaking down and processing. -bodies were discovered in the 1930s. In the 1960s, mining giant Falconbridge Limited acquired the assets of the various mining companies that were exploring the Raglan property2. At the time, the Inuit had little or no say in the way in which any mining project would proceed. In 1975, however, the James Bay and Northern Quebec AgreementAgreement: any explicit, signed document that is negotiated and includes mutual concessions or limitations placed on both sides. Examples are Negotiation AgreementsNegotiation Agreement: an early agreement in the mining process, likely to occur in the Exploration StageExploration Stage: the whole range of activity from searching for and developing mineral deposits., which would outline the basis of the relationship between the Aboriginal group and the mining company and how the relationship will evolve if the mine moves forward. , Exploration Cooperation Benefit Agreements, Socio-Economic Participation AgreementsSocio-Economic Participation Agreements (SEPAs): private, confidential contracts between Aboriginal communities and resource developers, like mining companies. SEPAs specify how the communities that will be affected by the development of a resource will also benefit from that development. Many SEPAs include terms about the employment and training of Aboriginal people, compensationCompensation: something (such as money) given or received as payment or reparation (as for a service or loss or injury). payments, protection of the environment, and profit-sharing. SEPAs are often called Impact Benefits Agreements (IBAs) and Cooperation Benefit Agreements (CBAs), and other names. The Aboriginal Mining Guide calls them all SEPAs.. (JBNQA) outlined the economic and cultural rights of Aboriginal people in Quebec’s north, and how these rights were to be protected. To administer and invest compensationCompensation: something (such as money) given or received as payment or reparation (as for a service or loss or injury). payments made under the JBNQA, Makivik CorporationCorporation: the most common form of business organization. It pursues set objectives and is empowered with legal rights usually only reserved for individuals, such as to sue and be sued, own property, hire employees, or loan and borrow money. was established in 1978. Its executive and Board of Directors are all elected by the Inuit residents of Nunavik.
Prior to developing the Raglan property, Falconbridge decided to strike a deal with Makivik and the residents of Salluit and Kangiqsujuaq. What unfolded was The Raglan Agreement. It is the first Impact and Benefits Agreement (IBA) in Canada between only a mining company and the Aboriginal people that its mining would affect. There had been IBAs before, but government had always co-signed them.