Coal mine truck (Canadian Press File Photo)

By The Canadian Press

NDP wants tighter restrictions on coal mining

Mar 14, 2022 | 11:28 AM

EDMONTON, AB — Alberta’s Opposition New Democrats say they will retable a private member’s bill in the legislature that would place tight restrictions on coal mining in the Rocky Mountains.

Leader Rachel Notley says the bill is essentially the same as the one that died on the order paper last spring.

The legislation would ban coal mining outright on the most sensitive parts of the much-loved summits and foothills.

Proposed mines elsewhere wouldn’t be allowed unless they conform to local land use plans, were informed by science, and went through at least six months of public consultation.

All coal leases in the Rockies would also be cancelled unless they were granted before 2020 or pertain to an already operating mine.

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Notley has said the United Conservative government’s recent moves to protect those areas still depend on the discretion of the minister and that real protection should be enshrined in legislation.

(The Canadian Press)

READ MORE: New coal mine restrictions announced for Alberta

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