The Okanagan Indian Band has received “unanimous support” from the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) in its push to protect the nation’s watersheds from a gold mining operation.

In a joint statement released Monday, the two groups said Indigenous leadership “voted unanimously” in support of the First Nation’s resolution opposing mining on its territories during UBCIC’s annual general assembly last month.

Photo Credit: Aaron Hemens, Local Journalism Initiative ReporterMembers of the Okanagan Indian Band gather in a circle during the re-opening of the community’s Cultural Arbor in 2022.

UBCIC is a political organization that represents more than 100 First Nations across BC.

The resolution — titled “Opposition to Mining in Okanagan Indian Band Watersheds and Protection of syilx Water, Salmon, and Sacred Sites” — calls for the protection of the Browns Creek and Whiteman Creek watersheds “from proposed mining activity by Ximen Mining Corporation.”

“These areas lie within the Okanagan Indian Band’s unceded territory and hold deep cultural, spiritual, and ecological importance for the syilx people,” the Nov. 3 statement reads.

The resolution also calls for the protection of syilx water, salmon, and sacred sites from industrial disturbance. It also calls for the recognition of the First Nation’s jurisdiction and responsibility to safeguard water.

“Water is life,” said Dan Wilson, Okanagan Indian Band’s y̓il̓mixʷm (chief). “It sustains everything around us and connects us to the generations before and after our own.”

He said UBCIC’s support “shows that First Nations across the province stand together in defence of our lands and waters.” 

“This is about protecting the health of our people, our salmon, and our future,” he added.

Photo Credit: Ximen MiningA satellite map shows the 20,000-hectare area being explored for a potential gold mine west of Vernon.

Located west of the band’s reserve near Vernon, the Brett Epithermal Gold Project is “Ximen’s primary precious metals project,” according to the mining corporation’s website. 

The company states it has owned and controlled the 20,000-hectare gold mineral “district” since 2013.

IndigiNews reached out to Ximen Mining for comment, but did not receive a response in time for publication.

“Ximen continues its commitment to greener, more sustainable mining,” the company states on its website, “by building a good relationship with the community, providing well-paying jobs to the local labour force and continuously looking at ways to reduce our environmental impact.”

But Okanagan Indian Band’s resolution says it “has consistently opposed” activities at the Brett mine, which has a “long history of exploration proposals in the Whiteman Creek watershed.”

The project has seen a number of deep holes drilled to survey for minerals, and began applying for underground exploration development permits in 2019.

Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, president of UBCIC, also called on the provincial and federal governments to “immediately halt all applications and permits for mineral exploration or mining” in the First Nation’s watersheds.

“The UBCIC stands in unwavering solidarity with [Okanagan Indian Band],” said Phillip, who is syilx and a member of Penticton Indian Band.

“We are deeply grateful … for their incredible climate leadership in stewarding their territory.”