"First Nation in Abitibi-Témiscamingue seeks independent review of potential mining project," 5 Apr. 2022

An Anishinabeg First Nation in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region wants to lead its own environmental assessment of a lithium mining project that the company Sayona is looking to develop on ancestral land.

... The project the First Nation is particularly concerned about is the Tansim project near Lac Simard, which is part of its territory. The community uses the area to fish, hunt and forage for medicinal plants and berries. Although the project is still in the exploration phase, Mathias says his community is worried that the drinking water and land could be contaminated if a mine is developed. 

... In a statement, the mining company said it is attuned to the concerns of the local communities where it operates, and that it wanted to involve them in their projects and create partnerships with them. "Sayona has already committed, almost a year ago, to conduct all the necessary environmental studies in due course," the statement read. The company said it was too soon to start those studies at this point, because it hasn't even determined whether there is enough mineral to actually start a mine at the Tansim site.