BC firm eyes copper and cobalt mine inside Tatshenshini-Alsek Park World Heritage Site

Dominion Critical Minerals, a junior mining company incorporated in B.C. in September 2025, plans to mine copper and cobalt in Tatshenshini-Alsek Park in northwest B.C. The company's stated goal is to reopen the Windy Craggy mine.

The park is part of a transboundary UNESCO World Heritage Site shared with Yukon and Alaska. In the 1990s, the B.C. government determined the Windy Craggy project was "too hazardous environmentally." The mine site was later added to the park, and the mineral rights holder, Geddes Resources Ltd., was paid compensation described as "an equivalent of" $120 million. The Tyee reports Geddes was not required to remediate the Windy Craggy exploration sites, which still leach acid rock drainage into the environment, reaching a tributary of the salmon-bearing Tatshenshini River.

According to the Tyee, Dominion's interest was first drawn by an orange discharge from one exploration area, and the company's own satellite analysis and documents describe the former exploration site as an environmental concern. Dominion proposes to mitigate the acid drainage while mining, and its most recent proposal is a 37-kilometre tunnel to reach the deposit, which it says would "not impact the surface."

A June briefing note prepared for then-environment minister Tamara Davidson, obtained under freedom of information law, described Dominion as having "strong financial backing and determination" to advance the proposal despite the park location and First Nation concerns. The note does not say what those concerns are.

The park sits in the territory of the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations, which has a management agreement with the B.C. Environment Ministry. The First Nation was not available to comment before publication. Mining is not permitted in B.C. Class A parks. The ministry suggested Dominion apply for a park boundary adjustment, a decision that rests with the environment minister. It is unclear whether Dominion has filed that application.

The ministry has limited media communications to critical health and public safety information until a new provincial government is sworn in, likely in mid-November. Dominion has no public website or contact information, and neither the company nor the ministry responded to the allegations in the reporting.