Fernie city council has given the okay for the city to write a letter of support for Elk Valley Resource’s Fording River Extension (FRX) project to move to the environmental assessment phase.
The project plan is a proposed extension of EVR’s existing Fording River Operations to extend the lifespan by approximately 35 years.
EVR is seeking a positive readiness decision from the Environmental Assessment Office to allow assessments to begin and is asking local governments for their support.
If the project is fully approved, EVR is anticipating approximately 2,600 additional direct jobs and 8,000 indirect and induced jobs.
Indigenous and government relations director Rory O’Connor says that’s in addition to many local residents already working on the project.
“Fording River operations themselves employ about 1,500 people from across the region and our total company employment is around 5,500 people.”
According to EVR, letters of support have already been sent by the RDEK, the District of Sparwood and the Municipality of the Crowsnest Pass. Elkford is in the midst of developing one.
More information on the proposed extension can be found here.
Be the first to know! Don’t miss out on breaking news and daily updates in your area. Sign up to MyEastKootenayNow News Alerts.
