RELATIONSHIP WITH THE TCG & TAHLTAN NATION

During the 2022 season, what involvement did TCG personnel and departments have with your company? If they were not involved, why not?

Galore Creek had eight Technical Working Sessions with representatives from the TCG’s Lands Department, Fisheries Department, Wildlife Department and the Tahltan Heritage Resources Environmental Assessment Team (THREAT), covering topics including environmental studies, tailings facility location and design, and water stewardship.

Our team also worked with Ann Ball, Director of Employment & Business in relation to activities on site; Sandra Marion, Director of Culture & Heritage, on archaeology; and Cassandra Puckett, Director of Education & Training, on bursary program implementation and administration. We coordinated with Events Manager, Roxanne Ball, and Communications & External Relations Director, Ombrielle Neria, to facilitate a breakfast for Tahltan Youth at the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) conference in June.

In 2022, how many Tahltans did you employ? What positions did they hold in your company and what percentage of Tahltans did you employ compared to others?

In 2022, GCMC hired 35 Tahltan workers for the summer program as mechanics, fallers, line-cutters, catering and housekeeping staff, site and operations maintenance staff, general and environmental labourers, archaeological assistants, and environmental scientists. Senior roles held by Tahltans included two camp leads.

The summer program included 35 Tahltan workers on-site, and 214 non-Tahltan workers on rotation. Tahltans make up 14% of those on site on average over the season. The 2022 program had a total of 7,469 person days on site with a total of 1,594 Tahltan person days. In total, Tahltans worked 21% of all days worked.

What employment opportunities, now and in the future, are available to Tahltan members?

As the project continues, full and part-time employment will be available through Galore Creek and our service providers, including several Tahltan companies. We are looking to hire and develop talented Tahltans interested in sustainable and responsible mineral resource development in roles such as general management, project development, operations, technical, environmental, and sustainability.

We encourage our service providers to hire Tahltans for a range of positions, including in camp maintenance and site operations, heavy equipment operations, mechanical and environmental technicians, food services positions, labourers, and drill core technicians.

Why should Tahltan members want to work for you?

Galore Creek is a world-class mineral resource development opportunity that has the potential to become a flagship mining project for decades, developed with direct input from Tahltans who have always played an important role in the project’s advancement. We expect that to continue. The project has a long collaborative history with the Tahltan Nation, and we are proud that Tahltans have returned to work with us for many years. Galore Creek is committed to responsible and sustainable development of the resource for the overall benefit of Tahltans.

Galore Creek is seeking opportunities to develop, train and grow the Tahltan workforce and works collaboratively with the TCG to ensure opportunities are available to Tahltans.

Did you have any Tahltan contractors working for your company? What percentage of your contracting dollars went to Tahltan companies, including TNDC and their joint ventures?

Yes. 65% of our 2022 field operations contracting dollars went to Tahltan companies.

Many services are provided by Tahltan businesses or Tahltanpartnered businesses, including TEEM (environmental baseline), KICA (catering, mechanical, and operators), Summit Camps (camp rehabilitation), RnS Culinary (camp and logistics management), Tahltan-Allnorth (engineering), Iskut Waste Removal, Bear Dog Aviation (helicopters), Northwest Fuels (fuel delivery), Metsantan (fallers), Northern Labour Services (labour employment services), Norad (expediter and pad building), Sunwolf (earth movers), and Tahltan-ERM (Environmental Services). All offer opportunities for Tahltan members.

Do you have any outside contractors working for you? If so, who are they? Who were the primary contractors you utilized? Do they offer employment opportunities to Tahltan members?

All our service providers are interested in providing employment opportunities to Tahltan members and would be pleased to discuss opportunities. In 2022 service providers included: Kleanza Consulting, archaeology (Vancouver, BC); Ecofish Research, environmental, wildlife, and baseline studies (Vancouver, BC); Alkan Air, aircraft charter (Whitehorse, Yukon); BAT Construction, scalers for road maintenance (Kamloops, BC); SNC Lavalin, environmental/soil (Vancouver/Montreal); SIRIUSMEDx, site medics (Sainte-Adele (Montreal), QC); and Westcan Communications (Terrace, BC).

Anything else you would like to share with the Tahltan Nation?

Our team proudly operates safely and responsibly in Tahltan Territory. This year we are excited to initiate a regulatory process to review changes and update approvals in collaboration with Tahltans. We encourage Tahltans to visit our community office in Smithers BC, to learn more, and to share ideas on how we can continue working together.

Galore Creek continues to implement the 2006 Participation Agreement, providing preferential employment and contracting opportunities, supporting the Tahltan Heritage Trust, engaging with Tahltans, and discussing ways to include and incorporate Tahltan knowledge into the project design.