Title : Supreme Court set to rule on giant ski resort opposed by Indigenous group
link : Supreme Court set to rule on giant ski resort opposed by Indigenous group
Supreme Court set to rule on giant ski resort opposed by Indigenous group
The Supreme Court of Canada will deliver a landmark ruling today on a giant ski resort project in British Columbia proposed for land a local Indigenous group considers sacred.
The massive development in the Kootenays, called the Jumbo Glacier resort, has been tied up in legal wrangling since the plan's inception in 1991.
The year-round resort, proposed by Glacier Resorts, would be built in an area known as Qat'muk by the Ktunaxa Nation, which believes it is where the grizzly bear spirit was born, goes to heal and returns to the spirit world.
The Ktunaxa people believe the development would desecrate the sacred area.
The Ktunaxa Nation Council declined to comment before the judgment is delivered at 9:45 a.m. ET today, but in a statement released in December 2016 when the Supreme Court heard the case, the group said the project would infringe on the First Nation's rights protected under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Constitution Act.
"Qat'muk has existed long before any ski resort proposal and long before Canada was a country," said council chair Kathryn Teneese. "As a nation, we have spent too much money fighting in the court system to prove what we have always known. Qat'muk is vital to Ktunaxa as well as local wildlife populations and biodiversity and must be protected."
Economic generator
According to the project's website, Jumbo Glacier Resort would be a "unique sightseeing destination" and a big economic generator for construction jobs and resort employment. It would provide lifts to four glaciers at an elevation of up to 3,419 metres.
The three-phase project includes 5,500 bed-units, plus 750 beds for staff accommodations and is expected to draw 2,000 to 3,000 visitors a day in high season.
The resort's location was chosen for its optimal snow conditions, high elevations, large glaciers, and the fact that the Jumbo Creek valley has seen "significant prior use," according to the website.
The case could set a precedent for the extent to which the charter protects the beliefs and practices of Indigenous spiritual traditions when it comes to development.
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