Placer Advocacy

The BC placer industry is facing some challenging times. We need support from all members of the community to keep the industry alive.

We have a petition going at Change.org which will be presented to the key decision makers in BC. Please sign the petition here: Stop the Proposed Moratorium on Placer Mining in British Columbia

We are also engaging in a letter writing campaign to key decision makers in the BC government. Please take the time to write a personal letter to each of the people listed below. Remember to keep things classy and paint the placer industry in a positive light. Here are some tips for writing a letter.

  • Be respectful; we need to look like the good guys.
  • Share personal stories and experiences. We want to show how important placer mining is.
  • Describe how placer mining benefits local communities, businesses, and families.
  • Acknowledge environmental concerns and emphasize the industry’s commitment to responsible and sustainable practices. Mention specific regulations and safeguards already in place.
  • Provide examples of reclamation and industry positivity.
  • Encourage family members and children to share their stories of how placer mining matters to them.
  • Discuss what we will be giving up if this industry is banned.

Please do not do any of the following:

  • Say negative or potentially racist things about First Nations.
  • Rant about how incompetent the government is; we’ll deal with that on a future date.
  • Use any sort of foul or unprofessional language.

Below is a list of the people we need to target with this campaign. Email letters are great but please send printed letters via regular mail as well. Printed letters are harder to ignore.

Nathan Cullen
Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship
email: [email protected]
Room 310 Parliament Buildings
Victoria, BC V8V 1X4

Peter Wijtkamp
Director Policy and Regulatory Reform at BC Ministry of Energy and Mines
[email protected]
235 468-3502

Josie Osborne
Minister of Energy, Mines, and Low Carbon Innovation
email: [email protected]
alt email: [email protected]
Room 325 Parliament Buildings
Victoria, BC V8V 1X4

Murray Rankin
Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation
[email protected]
Room 323 Parliament Buildings
Victoria, BC V8V 1X4

Tania Demchuk
Assistant Deputy Minister,
Responsible Mining and Competitiveness Division
[email protected]
PO Box 9320 Stn Prov Govt
Victoria BC V8W 9N3

Donna Myketa
Chief Gold Commissioner and Executive Director, Mineral Titles
[email protected]
PO Box 9322 Stn Prov Govt
Victoria BC V8W 9N3

MLAs:
John Rustad
BC Conservative leader
[email protected]

Coralee Oakes
BC United Party
[email protected]

Feel free to contact your own MLA as well and let them know this is important.

Sample Letters

Sample letter to Nathan Cullen, Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship
Link to sample letter

Sample letter from a placer miner
Link to sample letter

Sample letter from a BC resident of a small town
Link to sample letter

Sample letter from a business owner who supports placer mining
Link to sample letter

Sample letter from the child of a placer miner
Link to sample letter

Sample letter from a less articulate placer miner
Link to sample letter

Please don’t copy these letters word for word. They are here to give an idea of what to write. We want these letters from the heart so the decision makers know that we matter, our industry matters and we’re not going away.

If you need help with a letter please send us an email on the West Coast Placer contact page.

Thanks for your support. We’re all in this together!