The mountains and foothills of the Yellowstone to Yukon region contain a wealth of mineral resources. Some of the earliest mining in Alberta was within what is now Banff National Park. Coal was mined at Bankhead, a community a few miles east of Banff, to supply the Canadian Pacific Railway. Later coal mining moved east to Canmore, where a coal mine operated for 80 years.

Today, coal excavation is the single largest mining activity in the Y2Y landscape, with aggregate (gravel), sandstone, limestone, uranium, lead, zinc, copper, tungsten, and others mined in various places throughout the region.

The impact of mining is similar to the impacts of forestry and oil and gas development, and also adds to the cumulative effects of those industries. Mineral exploration and development require the construction of roads that destroy or fragment natural habitat. Traffic on those roads can be deadly to wildlife and can prevent species from reaching important habitat and food resources. Large open-pit mines destroy swaths of habitat in a way that makes restoration virtually impossible. Mining is a particular threat to water quality, causes long-term impacts such as acid mine drainage, where toxic substances from the mine leach into streams and rivers long after a mine has ceased production.

Companies wanting to engage in mineral exploration and development are given preferred status over almost all other land uses, in both Canada and the US. This is because of the historic free-entry system, which was created during the 19^thcentury and has changed very little since then. Under this system, rights to explore for, or develop, mineral resources are accessible to anyone who stakes a mineral claim under the appropriate mining legislation. The process for staking a claim is different in each jurisdiction: sometimes the four corners of the claim must be marked with wooden stakes, sometimes the claim can be staked online.

Even in this time of increasingly restrictive rights to land and resources, staking a claim can lead to the granting of mineral permits and leases, involving minimal consultation with, or lack of consent from, local people, First Nations communities, hunters and outfitters, and recreationists.

The free-entry system of mineral rights allocation is a relic that needs to be discarded. While other forms of resource extraction and development have come under increasing public scrutiny and regulation, the mining industry has successfully defended its ability to trump all other land uses. This is causing conflicts with other land users, and in some cases of aboriginal rights and titles, is leading to lawsuits and constitutional challenges. It is also damaging natural ecosystems in profound ways.

For more information about mining and its impacts, visit Mining Watch, and the Worldwatch Institute.