Environmental assessments are underway on two roads, leading from Webequie and Marten Falls, to the Ring of Fire mining development.
Charles Cirtwell, President of the Northern Policy Institute, notes construction won’t start for at least another year, because those doing the work want to make sure it’s done right.
“You wanna make sure they don’t end up in the situation where out in BC with the pipeline, where they got a little too fast and missed a few steps.”
The Institute President adds in the past some groups were left out of the assessment, which caused problems.
He adds there’s also the landscape to deal with.
“Even in Webequie, you’re going to be talking about a major bridge construction, because it’s at least one river to get across between the community and the mine site.”
Cirtwell notes while Premier Ford boasted of driving a bulldozer himself to do the job, these types of projects take years to finish, regardless of government.
“We created expectations this development was going to happen the very next day, but that’s not the way it happens. If you look at the way the oil sands came on stream, it was almost 35 years between discovery and actual production. So on that kind of schedule, we’re well ahead of the game.”
