Julio Mejia and Tegan Hill are analysts with the Fraser Institute.Premier David Eby's government is negotiating an agreement with the Tahltan Nation that could expand indigenous veto power across 11% of British Columbia — including a large share of one of Canada's richest mineral regions with deposits valued at roughly $1.3 trillion. The pending deal, and others like it, threaten the living standards of all British Columbians.Here's how we got here.In 2019, the BC legislature unanimously passed the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA), which requires the BC government to align provincial laws with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), which said indigenous people must give “free and informed consent prior to the approval of any project affecting their lands or territories and other resources.”Far from just an aspirational measure, as the provincial government once claimed, DRIPA has become the framework for a growing number of land agreements that effectively grant veto power to indigenous groups over projects including mining and energy infrastructure. In other words, the provincial government has created a massive new obstacle to private-sector investment — and the jobs and opportunities it creates for British Columbians, including indigenous people.For example, mining supports more than 40,000 jobs in BC, remains among the largest employers of indigenous people, and generates billions in revenue for all levels of government. Under DRIPA, mine development increasingly faces indigenous veto power, fuelling uncertainty about timelines, costs, and approval requirements. Competing jurisdictions (including the United States) have not adopted legislation equivalent to DRIPA and thus may be more attractive, from a policy standpoint, to investors. Eskay Creek, a gold and silver mine in BC’s “Golden Triangle” region, is expected to create thousands of jobs but required consent from the Tahltan Nation before it could proceed. To obtain that consent, Skeena, a precious metals development company headquartered in Vancouver, agreed to provide hundreds of millions of dollars in benefits to the Tahltan. The Red Chris mine expansion, another major copper and gold project in the same region, also requires Tahltan consent for any future changes, adding more uncertainty and costs..The Eby government also recently authorized negotiations with the Tŝilhqot’in Nation for a consent-based agreement covering mining in the Teẑtan Area, a mineral-rich region of central-western BC And the government recently extended a similar approach to south-central BC by signing an agreement with the Simpcw First Nation, which requires the proposed Yellowhead copper mine to obtain Simpcw consent before it can move forward.Companies may also have to obtain indigenous consent before exploration even begins, thanks to a 2025 BC Court of Appeal ruling that found the provincial government’s mineral-claims framework — which allowed for claims and exploration prior to indigenous consultation — to be inconsistent with DRIPA. This puts Canada at a significant competitive disadvantage relative to other mineral-rich countries, including the United States.This takes us back to the pending deal with the Tahltan Nation. While the agreement remains undisclosed, the Tahltan goal is to “embed consent-based and shared decision-making” across Tahltan-claimed territory, granting it project veto power over 96,000 square kilometres or, again, about 11% of BC. That includes roughly 70% of the Golden Triangle, one of Canada’s richest mining regions, with vast gold and silver deposits and nearly three-quarters of the country’s known copper reserves. The $1.3 trillion in mineral deposits at stake could mean billions in foregone royalties and revenues for the provincial government and fewer economic opportunities for British Columbians if projects are delayed or scrapped while the province becomes even less attractive to investment.The BC government’s passage of DRIPA back in 2019 has made the rules over land and resource rights much less predictable. That uncertainty will deter investment and economic development, and jeopardize the living standards of British Columbians. To fix BC's property rights crisis, the government must repeal DRIPA and enact clear, predictable, and competitive rules to attract investment in BC.Julio Mejia and Tegan Hill are analysts with the Fraser Institute.
