BC Supreme Court Grants Injunction In Record Ridge Case Judicial Review To Be Heard In Rossland

(MENAFN- EIN Presswire) EINPresswire/ -- March 11, 2026 – The British Columbia Supreme Court has granted an injunction preventing work from starting on the proposed Record Ridge mine southwest of Rossland until a judicial review can be heard.

The injunction was granted in response to a petition for judicial review filed by the Save Record Ridge Action Committee (SRRAC), which is challenging the Province of British Columbia's decision not to require a full environmental assessment for the project.

Earlier in the regulatory process, the project was proposed as an industrial quarry with a stated production capacity of 200,000 tonnes per year. In August 2024, the BC Environmental Assessment Office determined that the project was a mineral mine and required an Environmental Assessment. Following that determination, the proponent amended the project, reducing the stated production capacity to 63,500 tonnes per year, which is below the 75,000-tonne per year threshold that triggers an Environmental Assessment for a mineral mine. SRRAC maintains that the amended project remains essentially the same as the original 200,000-tonne project.

The Sinixt Confederacy, an Indigenous nation whose Aboriginal rights were affirmed by the Supreme Court of Canada and whose traditional territory includes the Record Ridge area, also appeared in support of the injunction application.

The hearing saw record attendance levels, with members of the public filling the main courtroom, the entire balcony, and an overflow room that was set up to accommodate the crowd.

Court proceedings noted that several regulatory approvals required for construction have not yet been secured. SRRAC has previously reported that it has been actively corresponding and meeting with the relevant ministries regarding these approvals and that these discussions have been constructive.

The judicial review hearing has been scheduled to take place in May. This will again be in Rossland, allowing the matter to be heard in the community most directly affected by the proposed development.

The injunction will remain in effect until the court renders its decision following the judicial review.

SRRAC has also filed a petition for judicial review of the project's Mines Act permit, arguing that it was issued without sufficient baseline data on asbestos, air quality, and water contamination, that expert evidence showing the project is overbuilt was disregarded, and that tourism impacts were not addressed, among other concerns.

Record Ridge is located approximately seven kilometers southwest of Rossland, a recognized BC Resort Municipality with an economy strongly dependent on outdoor recreation and tourism.

Record Ridge sits within a landscape widely used for recreation by citizens from across BC and the Pacific Northwest more broadly, with many visitors coming from Spokane, Seattle, and Portland in the US and from Kelowna and Vancouver in BC. The proposed mine would be immediately adjacent to the internationally renowned Seven Summits Trail and only a few kilometers from the boundaries of Red Mountain Resort, which attracts visitors from across BC and from around the world.

The Record Ridge area also contains multiple rare ecosystems, including alpine grasslands and old-growth forests, and is recognized internationally as a Key Biodiversity Area. Record Ridge lies within the Columbia River watershed, upstream of one of the largest salmon restoration efforts underway anywhere in North America.

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