"Intrusive Rentier"

I was reading a "Review of the Proposed Prosperity Project..." by MiningWatch and came across the term, "Intrusive Rentier". I had to look it up and find out what it meant.

The report said:

Mining projects are notorious for the creation of an “Intrusive Rentier” syndrome in the communities and regions where they are located. This term is used by Polèse & Shearmur (2006)1 to describe an observed effect in regions dominated by a small number of highly capitalized (and high wage) employers.

href="http://www.mwatch.koumbit.org/sites/miningwatch.ca/files/Social%20Impacts%20Review%20Executive%20Summary.pdf">

I'm glad someone is thinking of these things. The MiningWatch report also waded into the fact that the "Economic Benefits" analysis provided by Taseko is very one-sided and confusing, and does not include any attempt at true cost-benefit analysis. Everyone knows these things up front, but the lust by a few to make a killing trumps the need for many to look beyond a few years.

The report states:

It is pretty clear that, at least for the first few years, low income renters in the region will be faced with a vacancy rate of less than zero, escalating rents and over‐crowding. Most of these will be single parent women and Aboriginal people, but the pressure will extend to low wage earners across the region.
Eventually more accommodation will be built, and trailer parks hastily thrown up ( with all the regulatory hassles that entails) but that will take years, and after 2012, when the mine starts to wind down, the owners of those units will once again face a dramatic drop in market value.

So What's an Intrusive Rentier?

According to a report from the Centre - Urbanisation Culture Société, Intrusive Rentier refers to a syndrome where where a large employer bids up salary and benefit expectations to the detriment oflocal entrepreneurship. In the case of the Prosperity Mine, it refers to the effects of a single employer paying very high wages to a small group of employees, but enough to skew standards of living and social inequities.

If you live in the South Cariboo and have tried to buy land, you may have noticed another version of this syndrome, but in this case the Intrusive Rentiers are those from the coast that have pushed real estate prices beyond the locals' reach.

You may have also seen this if you live in a sawmill town (while the mills are doing well, unlike right now...), and noticed how one group in town is prosperous and another is almost equally UNprosperous.

Intrusive Rentier's Syndrome. Now you know!

The Straight goods: Say goodbye to Fish lake,forever!

Google Blogs Alert for: Tsilhqot'in National Government

The Straight goods: Say goodbye to Fish lake,forever! By Grant G ... is on traditional First Nations lands(Tsilhqot`in) and they are opposed to this project, the chief doesn`t believe mankind has the ability to make a replacement lake, his words are "Only the creator can do that" the goes onto say " . ... In 2002 Federal fisheries on orders from the government of the day made changes to the fisheries act Section 36 of the act(Metal,mining,effluent regulations), the changes were almost a carte blanche permission to use lakes as dumps, ... The Straight goods - http://powellriverpersuader.blogspot.com/

News from Mining Watch Canada

MiningWatch reported in early January of this year that it had been awarded $37,200 to participate in the federal environmental assessment of the Prosperity review process.



Mining watch was encouraged by the Xeni Gwet'in and Tsilhqot'in National Government to become involved and help fight the project. Their focus will be the tailings pond that would see two lakes drained and destroyed, as well as the surrounding area which has been in use for at least 7500 years.

The Xeni Gwet'in and TNG are not satisfied with the current process, especially now that the provincial government has signed off on the project.

Taseko is proposing it build a lake to "replace" Teztan Biny (Fish Lake).

In my opinion, nothing can justify the destruction of these lakes, and nothing is safe about building a holding pond for toxic waste when it sits immediately upstream of incredibly high value salmon habitat. Nothing makes the disrespect shown to First Nations people alright, especially the sort of grassroots racism you see in the Williams Lake Tribune editorials and comments sections.

Wow, they already know the mine's a go?

Hatch to build transmission line

• Published: 19/08/2008

HATCH Energy will establish a transmission line to provide power to the Prosperity Mine in British Columbia.

The company will engineer the 125km, 230kV transmission line. It will also provide cost estimates to determine long-term development possibilities.

Basic engineering is scheduled to be completed by early September 2008, with the transmission line to be in service by mid-2010.

Hatch Energy offices in Winnipeg, Castlegar, and Oakville are undertaking the project.

Fwd: Google Alert - "prosperity mine"

Google News Alert for: "prosperity mine"

WEB FIRST: Prosperity review panel: Morin will not be recused Williams Lake Tribune One of the federal panel members reviewing the Prosperity mine will not be asked to recuse herself, board chair Robert Connelly wrote in a letter to Taseko ...

Google Web Alert for: "prosperity mine"

BCLocalNews.com - WEB FIRST: Prosperity review panel: Morin will ... One of the federal panel members reviewing the Prosperity mine will not be asked to recuse herself, board chair Robert Connelly wrote in a letter to Taseko ...

Fwd: Google Alert - "prosperity mine"

Google News Alert for: "prosperity mine"

BC government approves controversial Prosperity mine project Vancouver Sun Estimated capital cost to bring Prosperity into production is $800 million. The mine would support 700 jobs for two years during construction, ...

BC government approves Prosperity Mine Williams Lake Tribune By Erin Hitchcock - Williams Lake Tribune The provincial government has approved Taseko Mines Ltd.'s Prosperity Mine project, the government announced ...

BCLocalNews Province approves Prosperity BCLocalNews THE provincial energy and environment ministers have granted Taseko Mines an environmental assessment certificate for the Prosperity mine. ...

Benzinga MABC Hails B.C. Approval of Prosperity Mine Benzinga 14, 2010) - The Mining Association of British Columbia (MABC) hailed the approval by the BC Environmental Assessment Office of the Prosperity gold-copper ...

Google Blogs Alert for: "prosperity mine"

Rural BC: Province Issues Environment Assessment Certificate for ... By Bernard von Schulmann The Prosperity mine is located near Taseko Lake in the Chilcotin, it is about 125 km from Williams Lake. It was granted an environment assessment certificate today. The deposit is a large copper gold porphyry. ... Rural BC - http://ruralbc.blogspot.com/

VernonBlog: Olympic Torch Relay Route (VERNON) By Don Quixote B.C. government approves Prosperity Mine - The provincial government has approved Taseko Mines Ltd.'s Prosperity Mine project, the government announced minutes ago. 31 minutes ago. News - Vernon Morning Star ... VernonBlog - http://vernonblog.blogspot.com/

Steve Forseth: Thursday News Round-up By Steve Forseth 2) Federal Environmental Assessment Panellist Morin will not be asked to recuse herself (Prosperity Mine Project) - more here 3) WL Council signs 5-year lease with CMHA for Heritage House - more here ... Steve Forseth - http://bclcarsouth.blogspot.com/

Google Web Alert for: "prosperity mine"

MABC Hails B.C. Approval of Prosperity Mine VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Jan. 14, 2010) - The Mining Association of British Columbia (MABC) hailed the approval by the BC Environmental ...

StreetInsider.com - MABC Hails B.C. Approval of Prosperity Mine MABC Hails B.C. Approval of Prosperity Mine. More News related to Press Releases . Stanford Graduate School of Business Research: Outsourcing May Be Slowing ...

BCLocalNews.com - WEB FIRST: B.C. government approves Prosperity Mine The provincial government has approved Taseko Mines Ltd.'s Prosperity Mine project, the government announced minutes ago. Jake Jacobs, spokesperson for the ...

B.C. government approves controversial Prosperity mine project BC government approves controversial Prosperity mine project http://bit.ly/ 7mk7Pi.

Stock Market News | Stock Market Headlines MABC Hails B.C. Approval of Prosperity Mine. 22 minutes ago - Marketwire Canada ... MABC Hails B.C. Approval of Prosperity Mine ...

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BC Government Approves Prosperity Mine

Herein lies the great paradox of the BC Liberal government: supporting First Nations' in achieving stronger, healthier communities, while at the same time being perfectly willing to steamroll any band that dares oppose "progress".

The Vancouver Sun reported today that,

Taseko Mines Ltd's ambitious $800-million Prosperity gold-copper project cleared a major hurdle Thursday with the awarding of a provincial environmental assessment certificate.

The approval is contingent on the mine, among 102 other things, replacing Fish Lake (Teztan Biny) and Little Fish Lake with an artificial lake. Presumably the 80,000 or so trout in the big lake will be lovingly carried to the man-made one.

I am disappointed at all of this since there has been no respect paid to the local Xeni Gwet'in First Nation in their rather obvious concerns over the effect the mine and tailings pond will have on their ancestral home. The mining company has stomped rather typically on the Xeni's rights and ignored their opinions and opposition to the whole process.

Only the federal review panel holds any chance of stopping the mine, or even changing the plan to destroy the lakes.

The lakes must be destroyed, according to Taseko Mines, because it is the only possible place to put the tailings. If the tailings aren't covered in adequate amounts of water, they generate acid waste. If the acid waste leaves the tailings pond, through a spill or in groundwater and aquifers, it WILL create serious issues with fish, wildlife and water quality. In other words, it will poison the environment.

The province said it was satisfied that the duty of the Crown to consult and accommodate first nations interests had been discharged, noting that 13 aboriginal groups were consulted.

The Xeni Gwet'in First Nation has previously indicated its opposition to the project and in in January 2009 filed a writ in B.C. Supreme Court in an attempt to stop the project.

Xeni Gwet'in Chief Marilyn Baptiste, who announced the court case, could not be reached for comment.