It's only a matter of time before aboriginal communities become major players in the mining industry, says the past president of the Yukon Chamber of Mines.

Rob McIntyre told delegates attending last week's 41st annual Yukon Geoscience Forum the evolution of aboriginal involvement in mining is happening right now.

There will be a day when First Nations are not just involved in providing services and supplies for mines, but rather will themselves be the mining companies in charge, he said.

McIntyre said the day is coming when aboriginal communities won't just be supplying drivers for rock trucks. They'll be contracting the trucking companies, he told the audience.

If you do the math in the Yukon, he said, property holdings by the First Nations are equal to the land portfolios of some of the biggest mining companies.

McIntyre said he's calculated that 15,000 quartz mining claims could fit inside the Category A settlement lands for Mayo's First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun.

If you do the math for the Category A lands for all 11 Yukon First Nations with settlement agreements, there's probably room for more than 100,000 mining claims, he said.

McIntyre said First Nations in Canada with modern day treaties are among the world's largest owners of mineral rights.

And opportunities in mining fit perfectly with the desire of First Nations to advance their economic and social agendas, he insisted.

McIntyre, however, pointed out aboriginal communities don't apply the same risk assessment when it comes to weighing project proposals.

"Mining companies are often putting their company on the line when they develop a mine, but aboriginal perception is often that they are putting their community on the line,” he said.

A former executive with Alexco Resource who helped broker Nacho Nyak Dun's participation in the Bellekeno Mine development at Keno City said First Nations want opportunities.

But it's imperative that they are meaningful partners in the development, he said.

McIntyre said when Alexco pursued the renewal of a water licence recently, the company provided the First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun with funding to hire its own technical experts.

In many ways, First Nations feel reassured when members of their community are working on a project, he said.

McIntyre said mines not only provide economic benefits, but the jobs they create instill a confidence in the community with the development of new skills and professional opportunities.

When the 12 members of Nacho Nyak Dun graduated as underground miners after going through an intensive four-month training course, there was a moving ceremony attended by community elders, he told the audience.

"You should have seen the pride in those 12 young guys.”

Aboriginal communities, McIntyre insisted, see mining as a doorway to economic and social prosperity, provided it's done right, with their full participation.

McIntyre showed a picture from the official opening of the Bellekeno Mine featuring former premier Dennis Fentie, former chief Simon Mervyn of the Nacho Nyak Dun and Clynt Nauman, Alexco's chief executive officer.

A caption beside the picture reads: "There's a natural alignment between the mining industry and Canada's aboriginal population that will continue to draw the two closer and closer together.”

Justin Ferbey of the Carcross-Tagish First Nation reminded the audience the First Nation is no stranger to mining.

Sam McGee is more than the mythical character in the legendary Robert Service poem The Cremation of Sam McGee, he said.

McGee, said Ferbey, was a road builder who was responsible for building the vast spider web of mining roads on Montana Mountain that overlooks Carcross.

Today, that same network of mining roads has been turned into an internationally renowned network of mountain bike trails, he said.

Ferbey said the long-ago ancestors of the youth hired to build the mountain bike mecca helped carve the original mining roads.

Those ancestors were the ones who were hired to help gold seekers pack their gear over the Chilkoot Trail during the Klondike Gold Rush, he said.

Ferbey said their ancestor Skookum Jim – of the Gold Rush fame – was the first to negotiate a mining agreement.

The Carcross-Tagish First Nation is open to mining opportunities, he said.

In fact, Ferbey added, when the First Nation was making its land selections during the aboriginal land claim process, it hired professional geologists to assist in selecting areas of high potential.

The elders describe their traditional territory as the bread basket, or medicine basket, he told the audience. Ferbey said he likes to view it as a bank as well.

He said until they find another mine, however, the precious metal he sees these days comes in the shape of mountain bikes.