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Government

Ministry of Agriculture and Lands

Crown Land Restoration Branch

Reclamation and Prospecting Program (RAP)

The Ministry of Agriculture and Lands has partnered with the Northwest Community College, the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, Ministry of Advanced Education, Smithers Exploration Group and the Federal government through HRSDC (Human Resources and Social Development Canada) to provide educational opportunities and practical training to First Nations youth in mine reclamation and mineral prospecting activities.

The overall objective of the RAP program is to provide opportunities to First Nations youth to obtain skills and experience that will allow them to build a successful career in the mining and environmental sectors. The RAP program is also designed to help inject educated and skilled labourers into a diminishing workforce that is looking at a significant job shortfall over the next decade. Part of the training will be in a field-based program. Participants will collect site data that will aid the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands in evaluating the environmental status and in cleaning up historic mine sites. The program is initially focused on the Babine, Huckleberry, Hazelton, and Telkwa First Nation territories.

The Ministries of Agriculture and Lands and Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources committed $750,000 of funding in 2006/07. Deliverables during this first year include completion of a site evaluation framework, preliminary characterization of ten abandoned mines sites, establishment of the community advisory network, curriculum development, and team leader selection.

Site characterization and prospecting.