Company wants to appeal decision that rejected proposed Alberta open-pit coal mine

Photo: The Canadian Press

A sign opposing coal development is shown in the eastern slopes of the Livingston range southwest of Longview, Alta., Wednesday, June 16, 2021.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

The company behind a proposed open-pit coal mine in Alberta's Rocky Mountains has filed a request to appeal a decision by a review panel that rejected the project as being not in the public interest.

Benga Mining Limited filed the request Friday with the Court of Appeal of Alberta in regard to its Grassy Mountain Coal Project.

In the court filing, Benga says a June 17 decision by a joint federal-provincial review panel, including the Alberta Energy Regulator, contains errors of law and procedural fairness that warrant the granting of permission to appeal.

In the June decision, the review panel said the significant adverse environmental effects on westslope cutthroat trout and surface water quality likely to be caused by the mine outweigh the low to moderate positive economic impacts of the project.

Benga says the metallurgical coal mine in the Crowsnest Pass area of southwestern Alberta would create hundreds of jobs and produce up to 4.5 million tonnes of coal per year over a mine life of approximately 23 years.

The application for the appeal is to be heard on Sept. 9.