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Northwest Territories Mining Regulations (SOR/2014-68)

Regulations are current to 2024-03-06 and last amended on 2017-06-19. Previous Versions

Northwest Territories Mining Regulations

SOR/2014-68

FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATION ACT

TERRITORIAL LANDS ACT

Registration 2014-03-28

Northwest Territories Mining Regulations

P.C. 2014-306 2014-03-27

Whereas, pursuant to paragraph 24(b) of the Territorial Lands ActFootnote a, the proposed Northwest Territories Mining Regulations were published in the Canada Gazette, Part I, on June 29, 2013, substantially in the annexed form, and a reasonable opportunity was afforded to interested persons to make representations to the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development with respect to the proposed Regulations;

Therefore, His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and the Treasury Board, pursuant to sections 8, 12 and 23Footnote b of the Territorial Lands ActFootnote a and paragraphs 19(1)(a)Footnote c and 19.1(a)Footnote c and, considering that it is in the public interest to do so, subsection 23(2.1)Footnote d of the Financial Administration ActFootnote e, makes the annexed Northwest Territories Mining Regulations.

Interpretation

Marginal note:Definitions

  •  (1) The following definitions apply in these Regulations.

    Act

    Act means the Territorial Lands Act. (Loi)

    boundary post

    boundary post means a legal post, excluding a corner post and a witness post, marking the boundary of a claim or a plot of land that is being staked for the purpose of making it a claim. (borne de délimitation)

    business day

    business day means a day other than a Saturday or a holiday. (jour ouvrable)

    Chief

    Chief means the Chief of Financial Analysis and Royalties Administration Section of the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. (chef)

    contiguous

    contiguous, with reference to two or more claims, includes claims that were staked in a manner to be contiguous. (contigus)

    corner post

    corner post means a legal post marking the northeast, southeast, southwest or northwest corner of a claim or a plot of land that is being staked for the purpose of making it a claim. (borne d’angle)

    cost of work

    cost of work means expenses incurred in performing work, but excludes all of the following:

    • (a) transportation costs outside Canada for persons who performed work or for equipment used in work;

    • (b) taxes and fees paid to any level of government or any institution of public government;

    • (c) costs of staking and recording a claim;

    • (d) legal fees;

    • (e) administrative costs. (coût des travaux)

    depreciable assets

    depreciable assets means buildings, plant, machinery and equipment. (actif amortissable)

    environmental baseline studies

    environmental baseline studies means a description of selected environmental attributes that existed before mineral exploration or mining development and that are used to establish a benchmark from which to measure changes to the environment. Selected environmental attributes include meteorologic, hydrologic and hydro-geologic attributes, surface water and groundwater quality, aquatic resources, soil profiling, ecosystems, wildlife and wildlife habitat, cultural heritage and archaeology. (études environnementales de base)

    exploration cost

    exploration cost means an expense incurred for the purpose of determining the existence, location, extent, quality or economic potential of a mineral deposit in the Northwest Territories, but does not include an expense incurred for the purpose of bringing a mine into production. (frais d’exploration)

    fiscal year

    fiscal year, in respect of a mine, means the fiscal period of the mine’s operator as that period is defined in section 249.1 of the Income Tax Act. (exercice)

    holder of the surface rights

    holder of the surface rights means the lessee or registered holder of the surface rights to the land. (titulaire des droits de surface)

    legal post

    legal post means a post, tree or mound of stones set up in accordance with section 26 to serve as a boundary post, corner post or witness post. (borne légale)

    licence

    licence means a licence to prospect referred to in section 3. (licence)

    mine

    mine means an undertaking that produces or has produced minerals or processed minerals from lands within the Northwest Territories Mining District, and includes the depreciable assets that are located in the Northwest Territories and used in connection with the undertaking. (mine)

    mineral

    mineral means any naturally occurring inorganic substance found in the Northwest Territories Mining District, including frac sand, but excluding material the taking of which is regulated under the Territorial Quarrying Regulations. (minéral)

    mining property

    mining property means

    • (a) a recorded claim or a leased claim within the boundaries of which a mine or part of a mine is situated; or

    • (b) a group of contiguous recorded or leased claims within the boundaries of which a mine or part of a mine is situated and

      • (i) that belong to the same owner, or

      • (ii) if the mine is operated as a joint venture, that are owned exclusively by the members of the joint venture or parties related to the members of the joint venture, regardless of the degree of ownership of each recorded claim or leased claim. (propriété minière)

    mining reclamation trust

    mining reclamation trust means a trust that is established for a mine and that is created

    Mining Recorder

    Mining Recorder means the person designated by the Minister as the Mining Recorder. (registraire minier)

    mining royalty valuer

    mining royalty valuer means a person acting on the Minister’s behalf for the purpose of ascertaining the value of minerals or processed minerals produced from a mine. (évaluateur des redevances minières)

    owner

    owner, in respect of a recorded claim, leased claim, mine or mining property, means any person with a legal or beneficial interest in the recorded claim, leased claim, mine or mining property. (propriétaire)

    precious stone

    precious stone means a diamond, a sapphire, an emerald or a ruby. (pierre précieuse)

    prescribed form

    prescribed form means a form prescribed by the Minister under section 28 of the Act. (formule prescrite)

    processing

    processing means crushing, grinding, flotation, beneficiation, concentrating, milling, roasting, smelting, leaching, recrystallization or refining performed on minerals, and if the output of a mine is precious stones, cleaning and sorting that output. (traitement)

    processing assets

    processing assets means tailings disposal facilities and depreciable assets that are located in the Northwest Territories and that are used directly and exclusively in processing. (biens utilisés pour le traitement)

    related

    related, in respect of two or more persons, means that the persons are

    • (a) related persons within the meaning of section 251 of the Income Tax Act, read without reference to paragraph 251(5)(b) of that Act;

    • (b) associated corporations within the meaning of section 256 of the Income Tax Act, read without reference to subsection 256(1.4) of that Act;

    • (c) affiliated persons within the meaning of section 251.1 of the Income Tax Act; or

    • (d) other than for the purpose of subsection 74(1), owners or operators of the same mine. (liées)

    Supervising Mining Recorder

    Supervising Mining Recorder means the person designated by the Minister as the Supervising Mining Recorder. (registraire minier en chef)

    undeducted balance

    undeducted balance means

    • (a) in respect of a depreciation allowance, the original cost of the depreciable assets in respect of which the depreciation allowance is claimed, less any depreciation allowances previously claimed in respect of those assets;

    • (b) in respect of a development allowance, the undeducted balance of costs eligible for a development allowance under paragraph 70(1)(i); and

    • (c) in respect of a mining reclamation trust contribution allowance, the total of all contributions made to the mining reclamation trust, less any allowances previously claimed. (fraction non amortie)

    witness post

    witness post means a legal post set up in accordance with section 29 to provide reference to the corner of a claim or a plot of land that is being staked for the purpose of making it a claim.  (borne témoin)

    work

    work means

    • (a) any of the following undertakings that are performed in respect of a recorded claim — including, for the purposes of subsection 39(2), before the recorded claim existed — or within the zone of a prospecting permit, for the purpose of assessing its mineral potential:

      • (i) examination of outcrops and surficial deposits,

      • (ii) excavation,

      • (iii) sampling,

      • (iv) geochemical study or analysis,

      • (v) drilling,

      • (vi) geological mapping,

      • (vii) geophysical study or analysis,

      • (viii) remote sensing, if one or more undertakings set out in subparagraphs (i) to (vii) have been performed to evaluate the results of the remote sensing and are reported on, together with the remote sensing, in accordance with subsection 15(2) or 41(1),

      • (ix) the placing of grid lines in the field for the purpose of performing any of the undertakings referred to in subparagraphs (i) to (vii),

      • (x) petrography,

      • (xi) data analysis, map generation and preparation of reports that are submitted under these Regulations in respect of undertakings referred to in subparagraphs (i) to (viii) and (x);

    • (b) any of the following undertakings that are performed in respect of a recorded claim:

      • (i) the preparation of a plan of survey under paragraph 57(1)(a),

      • (ii) the building of roads, airstrips or docks for the purpose of performing any of the undertakings referred to in paragraph (a); and

    • (c) environmental baseline studies that are conducted in conjunction with undertakings referred to in subparagraphs (a)(i) to (vii) and (ix) or subparagraph (b)(ii), as well as analysis of the data resulting from the studies, map generation and the preparation of an appendix as required in paragraph 4(t) of Schedule 2. (travaux)

  • Marginal note:Related person

    (2) For the purposes of these Regulations, a person who is related to another person is considered to be also related to any person to whom the other person is related.

Application

Marginal note:Northwest Territories Mining District

 These Regulations apply in respect of the Northwest Territories Mining District, the area of which is described in Schedule 1 to the Northwest Territories Mining District and Nunavut Mining District Order.

Licence to Prospect

Marginal note:Issuance of licence

  •  (1) The Mining Recorder must issue a licence to prospect to a person who has applied for one and paid the applicable fee set out in Schedule 1 if the person is

    • (a) an individual who is 18 years of age or older; or

    • (b) a company that is incorporated or registered under the Business Corporations Act, S.N.W.T. 1996, c. 19, or that is incorporated under the Canada Business Corporations Act.

  • Marginal note:Licence not transferable

    (2) A licence is not transferable.

  • Marginal note:Licence valid for one year

    (3) A licence is valid from the date of its issue until March 31 following the date of its issue or, if renewed before March 31, for a period of one year beginning on April 1 following the date of its renewal.

  • Marginal note:Copy of licence

    (4) A licensee may, on request and payment of the applicable fee set out in Schedule 1, obtain from the Mining Recorder a copy of their licence.

Marginal note:Licence authorization — licensee or agent

  •  (1) Only a licensee or a person authorized to act on behalf of a licensee may

    • (a) prospect for the purpose of staking a claim; or

    • (b) undertake the staking of a claim.

  • Marginal note:Licence authorization — licensee

    (2) Only a licensee may

    • (a) make an application to record a claim;

    • (b) make an application for a prospecting permit;

    • (c) be issued a written confirmation under subsection 15(11), a certificate of extension under subsection 42(2) or a certificate of work under subsection 47(1);

    • (d) be issued a lease of a recorded claim or a renewal of such a lease; and

    • (e) acquire, by themself or with another licensee, a prospecting permit, recorded claim or lease of a recorded claim.

Prohibitions Respecting Prospecting, Staking and Mining

Marginal note:Lands not open for prospecting or staking

 It is prohibited to prospect or stake a claim on any of the following lands:

  • (a) lands used as a cemetery;

  • (b) lands covered by a prospecting permit, a recorded claim or a lease of a recorded claim, unless the prospecting or staking is done by the permittee, claim holder or lessee;

  • (c) lands for which the minerals have been granted by the Crown;

  • (d) lands subject to a prohibition on prospecting or staking a claim under a land use plan that has been approved under federal legislation or under a land claims agreement;

  • (e) lands that have been withdrawn from disposal or set apart and appropriated by the Governor in Council under paragraphs 23(a) to (e) of the Act;

  • (f) lands that are mentioned in subsections 22(1) and 52(5), section 56, subsection 67(2) and section 85 that are not open for prospecting or staking.

 

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