Crowsnest Pass Mayor Blair Painter says council will explore an annexation of the nearby Municipal District of Ranchland, the site of the proposed coking coal mine at Grassy Mountain.
Last week, Crowsnest Pass residents voted decisively in a non-binding vote in favour of the Grassy Mountain coal project, with more than 70 per cent of voters voicing their support.
But the site of the coal project is not actually in Crowsnest Pass, but in the nearby southwestern ranching community. Ranchland has stood in opposition of the coal project for months.
Painter said relations with the M.D. have been “cold” in recent months.
“Our municipality is quite narrow. We were looking for avenues to move to the north. South is a park,” he said. “We need more housing. So there’s a bunch of different reasons why we feel it would maybe be good to do that [annexation].”
Painter added deliberations around a possible annexation are still in their early stages. Coun. Lisa Sygutek made the motion to look into the move, and the next step will be to seek a legal opinion on how to move forward.
“We’re going to do some investigating, and that’s as far as it’s got right now,” he said.
WATCH | Crowsnest Pass residents vote in favour of Grassy Mountain coal project:
Residents of Crowsnest Pass have overwhelmingly voted to support the development of a nearby coal project. The non-binding vote wrapped up Monday evening.
Ranchland has a small population of just more than 100 residents, compared to around 6,000 living in the Crowsnest Pass.
Ron Davis, reeve of the M.D. of Ranchland, said he viewed Crowsnest’s recent vote as being “quite preposterous.”
“The Crowsnest Pass has attempted this in the past, actually, and it was actually turned down abruptly because of the guidelines for annexation have to be met,” David said. “And none of them were met in that instance. And I doubt if they would be met in this in this instance, either.”
Crowsnest Pass previously attempted to annex Ranchland in 2013. Under the provincial Municipal Government Act, any annexation process must be transparent, requires public consultation by the initiating municipality and “good faith negotiations” between the municipalities involved.
“We’ve very concerned that one municipality can try and determine what happens in another municipality. In this case, the Crowsnest Pass is trying to decide what happens in our municipality, and we don’t feel that’s the proper way to go about it,” Davis said.
“They’re trying to amp up their popular vote in their community, suggesting that this project should go ahead. Of course, we don’t agree with that type of democracy, I guess.”
Hearings took place this week
This week, the Alberta Energy Regulator has been holding a public hearing tied to exploration permits from Northback Holdings, the company behind the mine project. Those hearings are set to continue on Jan. 14.
But Ranchland has argued the AER shouldn’t have accepted the applications from Northback at all. The Alberta Court of Appeal released a ruling in August, stating it would hear arguments on the matter.
WATCH | Regulator hears arguments for and against coal mining on Rockies’ eastern slopes:
Public hearings are underway to determine whether exploration can proceed at the Grassy Mountain site.
Meanwhile, other Alberta communities have voiced split opinions on the proposed mine.
Craig Snodgrass, the mayor of High River, previously told CBC News that council had voted unanimously to send a letter to Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, stating all Alberta communities’ views should be considered before the project move ahead.
The office of Minister of Energy and Minerals Brian Jean has said the government is looking to strike a balance between preserving the environment and water while making sure there are stringent regulations to allow for responsible coal development.