100% support

Thank you for the opportunity to send my comment

I am a  Resident, small business owner in the Crowsnest Pass. I am in full support of this project.

Canada/Alberta boasts the highest environmental standards in the world. There is no reason we can not have responsible resource extraction. The technology is getting better every day. I’ve read through many of the submissions and it sounds like most don’t understand the difference between thermal and metallurgical coal. Metallurgical coal is a huge demand because it is essential for our existence, it is used to make pretty much everything in our lives and if we can mine it better environmentally then elsewhere, we should! If the ultimate goal is less pollution and a more healthy earth. The need for this product isn’t going to go away any time in the near future. Any coal project has to abide by, follow and constantly be under scrutiny of the Coal Conservation Act, Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act, Public Lands Act, Water Act, Mines and Minerals Act. The environment/air and the water needs to be monitored through the ENTIRE process from start to finish so the notion that they're going to ruin the environment and poison the water doesn't make any sense. Not only can we extract our resources responsibly but we also have very high standards on reclaiming the land after mined. Modern mining, strict environmental regulations and input from Indigenous communities provides multi-generational land use into the future.

I have spoke with many fellow residents of Crowsnest Pass, many of us are frustrated with the misinformation and fear mongering that is being distributed about the environment and water, much of which is based on the problems created by legacy mining, and no consideration for advancements that TECK and other mining companies have made in water treatment. The information is out there and not hard to find. A drive down main street Blairmore shows overwhelming support for coal mining as there is a sign of support in almost every business window.

There is a real concern over economic viability in this community. I know tourism has been the topic of discussion for economic revival of our small municipality for about 20 years, this hasn't happened yet. I see many problems with that plan. To start with our municipality does not have the infrastructure nor the financial base to develop the infrastructure needed for a tourism industry big enough to revive our community.

Please consider the information in this Responsible Mining website

https://responsiblemining.ca/