Dawson City business community fears impact of continued placer mining licence delays

The Dawson City, Yukon's Chamber of Commerce (DCCC) and the Klondike Visitor's Association (KVA) are the latest organizations to show their support for the Klondike Placer Miner's Association (KPMA) over mounting concerns with delays in the Yukon Government's licence renewal process.

Last week the KPMA said 19 placer mine operators had their licences expire while in queue for renewal and another 59 licences are set to lapse by the end of this year.

Placer mining is an operation that uses water and gravity to separate gold from dirt and gravel without the use of chemicals. Placer mining operations in the Klondike are primarily family-run and both the chamber of commerce and visitor's association say placer miners are key to the Dawson economy and have been since the days of the Gold Rush.  

"We have a lot of industries that rely upon the placer miners so this isn't just going to affect the mining community but rather all of these other industries as well," said Justine Hobbs, interim executive director for the DCCC.

Hobbs pointed to local mechanic shops that service mining equipment, restaurants where miners eat and grocery stores where mining camps source food.

Hobbs said her organization supports the KPMA in asking the territorial government to provide temporary extensions to current licence holders waiting for their renewal. 

"We want to prevent that economic disruption," Hobbs said. " And we also want to make sure the environmental assessments are done thoroughly and they're well conducted so a temporary extension would allow for that."

Ricky Mawunganidze is the executive director for the Klondike Visitor's Association.

He said placer mining brings in over half of the commercial revenue the town sees annually, adding that if placer miners aren't able to work they aren't re-investing back into the community.

He calls it a lose-lose situation.

Mawunganidze is also urging the Yukon Government to temporarily extend the licences, as well as keep the KVA and other interested organizations informed.

"When we have situations like this that have the potential to have dire implications not only for a single sector but, you know, a sector that contributes over fifty per cent to the Dawson economy, I think there is value in transparency," Mawunganidze said. "Without that, the assumption is that not enough is being done to resolve this issue."

Laura Seeley, spokesperson for the Yukon government cabinet said in an email that the territorial government anticipates making an announcement on the issue soon.