In the week after the Yukon government released its plan to slash greenhouse gases in the next decade, NDP Leader Kate White is questioning how mining emissions will affect the territory’s ambitious goals.

She noted Wednesday the plan doesn’t account for emissions caused by mines in the planning stages. For example, the proposed Casino mining project anticipates an annual output of 716 kilotonnes of CO2 at the peak of operation, she pointed out.

“Not only would this more than double Yukon’s 2017 non-mining emissions, it would amount to 2.7 times the 264 kilotonnes that the government is trying to cut by 2030,” White told the legislature.

“Can the minister confirm that, even if all of the objectives set out in the draft climate action plan are achieved, Yukon’s overall emissions could still rise should the planned mines go online in the next few years?”

Energy, Mines and Resources Minister Ranj Pillai noted that the Casino project, which is still in the proposal stage, has not yet entered an environmental assessment.

The mine, however, could be a major driver of copper, which is a necessary resource in the creation of a green economy, he said.

Copper is used for clean and emerging technologies such as solar cells and electric vehicles. As well, it’s one of the few materials that do not degrade in the recycling process, according to Natural Resources Canada.

Pillai said it will be important to work with industry in the creation of commodities that bolster the global green economy.

He pointed out that the climate strategy is a draft.

“We believe that we are going in the right direction,” he said. “I think that our prerogative has been that the mining sector is important, it has to be done in an environmental way, and we have to respect the community that we all live in.”

Pillai pointed out the Minto Mine operates on the grid. As a result, it uses clean energy, as evidence that there are ways to balance good environmental practices while supporting the industry.

He told media after question period that his department is “committed to start a process” toward a clean future.

The key, he said, will be to find balance.

“Yukon met its targets a number of years ago and they met their targets because all mining stopped, so you’re essentially in a position where because of this drop in the economy you meet your targets,” Pillai said. “I don’t think that’s really where we want to be.”

Pillai said he is interested in consulting with other governments to gauge the appropriate intensity for extraction, particularly copper extraction.

He envisions a future where the Yukon is able to provide a supply of copper to the global movement toward electrification.

He added that assessing the future environmental impact of a fluctuating mining ecosystem is challenging, due to the high number of variables and shallow pool of available information.

“I think everybody would have wanted to have stronger data,” Pillai said. “But when we go back and look at what was in place, the data we used was the best possible data.”

Speaking to reporters, White agreed it will be important to work with the mining industry in the future, but said she would like to see a higher return for the territory.

“Wouldn’t it be great if Yukon got paid for the non-renewable resources being pulled out of the ground?” she said.

“I think that should be part of the conversation. It’s not that I’m saying that mining shouldn’t happen in the territory, but I think we should be honest about the cost of mining.”

She suggested an increase in royalties could provide the territory with funding to invest in renewable projects.

“We are the lowest in North America, we are probably the lowest in developed countries,” she said of the Yukon’s royalty structure.

In the Yukon’s Placer Mining Act, the royalty paid from mines to the government is set at 2 1/2 per cent.

The cost of gold, however, is capped at $15 per ounce, simultaneously capping royalties at just below four cents an ounce. The price cap is an antique piece of legislation dating back to 1906.

As of Thursday, the price of gold was listed at $1,944 per ounce, or 129 times the capped rate.

In 2019, Yukon mines produced 75,228 ounces of gold.

At $15 per ounce, the government yielded approximately $28,210 in royalties.

Two and a half per cent at the current price of gold would have yielded $3.7 million.