The McMurray Métis are reaffirming their support for Teck Resources’ proposed Frontier Project.
The highly-debated oilsands would be located around 110 km north of Fort McMurray and would produce around 260,000 barrels of oil per day, creating around 2,500 jobs during their operations and 7,000 during construction.
The project is currently being reviewed by the federal government after receiving the green light from the government of Alberta and a Joint Review Panel.
In a statement, McMurray Métis President Gail Gallupe says they stand by their decision to support the mega-oilsands.
“We have entered into a long-term sustainability agreement with Teck Resources, who have made considerable environmental stewardship commitments regarding the Frontier Project.”
“The joint efforts of McMurray Métis and Teck Resources include ongoing mitigation, monitoring and management of the Frontier Project impacts to the environment and McMurray Métis traditional use and harvesting rights.”
The group wanted to reaffirm their stance after seeing multiple stories attacking the project.
“The outside organizations that have been in the media don’t speak for our community,” added Gallupe.
“We have worked hard to ensure that the environment and our Métis rights are protected, while also ensuring our community benefits from this type of responsible development by Teck Resources.”
The federal government is currently reviewing comments submitted by the public. There’s no timeline on when a decision is expected to be made.