Another local Indigenous group is backing Teck Resources’ Frontier project.
The Willow Lake Métis Nation is backing the proposed project which would be located north of Fort McMurray next to Wood Buffalo National Park.
They join the Fort McMurray #468 First Nation, the Fort McMurray Métis, and the Fort McKay Métis who’ve already publicly expressed their support for the mega-oilsands.
Willow Lake Vice-President Justin Bourque tells Mix News the project would be a big benefit to his community.
“We have a number of plans around employment opportunities, training, and things like that… from our community’s perspective this project would be a benefit to, not only, our community but our region and economy.”
The Métis Nation was one of several Indigenous groups Teck consulted with over the past few years.
Bourque says the oil company was very willing to listen and create plans to address all of their concerns.
“It was a discussion between what are our priorities as a community, what are the concerns from an impact perspective that our community has, and on what Teck will do in order to make sure those concerns are alleviated.”
Frontier would create about 7,000 jobs during construction and another 2,500 through operations while producing around 260,000 barrels of oil per day.
The federal government is currently reviewing the project before making a decision on whether to approve it.
It was recommended to be approved by a joint review panel last year.
