Alternatives North has uncovered that the GNWT met secretly with the mining industry about developing new mining regulations for at least a year before allowing the rest of the public into the latest public engagement. The discovery was made through an Access to Information request that resulted in the release of more than 800 pages of documents concerning communications between the GNWT Department of Industry Trade and Investment (ITI) and the mining industry on the development of regulations that will govern that sector. The documents offer very strong evidence of ‘regulatory capture’ with the Mineral Resources Act regulations policy intentions appearing to reflect industry positions and interests which are not necessarily the same as the public interest.
Regulatory Capture Press Release
Newly reviewed documents show strong evidence of regulatory capture in the Mineral Resources Act regulations, with policy intentions tracking industry positions rather than the public interest. Regulatory capture occurs when a regulator is co-opted to serve the commercial interests of those it’s meant to oversee. This raises real questions about whether NWT mining regulation protects residents, or the industry itself.
Backgrounder on ATI request
This backgrounder documents the ATI request that surfaced the evidence: after ITI held no public engagement on the Mineral Resources Act regulations for 33 months, Alternatives North sought records of the department’s dealings with the mining industry, a request ITI initially met with no records at all, then partial access only after a binding order from the Information and Privacy Commissioner.
