Mineral Surface Lease Agreements

Northern Affairs negotiates and administers Mineral Surface Lease Agreements for northern mines which operate on Crown land in the Northern Administrative District. As co-ordinated with various provincial government ministries and industry, the leases address a range of issues to which mining companies must respond, including land tenure, environmental protection measures, occupational health and safety provisions, and socio-economic benefits for northerners.

Beyond addressing business opportunities and other local benefits, each mine Surface Lease Agreement also requires the company to negotiate a long-term Human Resource Development Agreement with the Ministry of Advanced Education, Employment and Labour. This plan must speak to efforts to recruit, train and hire northern workers. As a result, northern mines today have hired more than half of their workforces from the North.

Northern Affairs currently administers 13 Surface Lease Agreements. These Agreements cover former mine sites that are in decommissioning and reclamation stages, current operating sites, and mine sites that are under construction.

For more information, call (306) 425-4283 or 425-4261.