St Barbara reviving 3 old proposals as new Eastern Shore gold mine megaproject and St Mary's Candidate for federally protected Ecologically Significant Area is one of them

The Australian company that operates the Touquoy gold mine in Nova Scotia has proposed a new gold megaproject that would span three sites on the province's Eastern Shore.  St Barbara has pitched the 15-Mile Processing Hub project under the title of its subsidiary, 15-Mile Minerals and Renewables (15-MMR). The project would see open-pit mines developed at three locations, with the ore being trucked to facilities at one of those locations for processing.

Listen to Information Morning June 26th with Scott Beaver talking about the new Mega Mine: https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-27-information-morning-ns

The project has entered the federal assessment stage July 17th, 2026, with only a 20-day comment period. The Federal Assessment Agency of Canada process has 5 stages. The first stage is initiated when the proponent submits their project. The first stage is also very important because this is the stage where the public (you) get to comment on the project. The most important part of stage one is the federal regulator will determine if a federal assessment is going to move forward or not. The people of NS deserve, at the very least, for this mega gold project assessed at the more robust federal level.

The agreement the federal liberals and the NS provincial conservatives made back in April, "One Project One Review" is very concerning and relates directly to this.  If you recall the intention was to fast track Canadian industrial projects and was designed to push projects into the provincial environmental assessment process and bypass federal environmental assessments.  We need at the very least a federally assessed project here in a river where the federal government has spend around 4 million on endangered Atlantic salmon habitat and restoration.  A place where the endangered wood turtle holds the worlds largest population.  And the only spot in Canada given the candidacy into the Ecologically Significant Area protection process under the federal fisheries act.  

One Project One Review news piece from the Joan Baxter: https://www.halifaxexaminer.ca/environment/alarm-bells-ring-over-new-one-project-one-review-agreement-between-ottawa-and-ns-over-environmental-assessments/

If you choose to comment, we have created this toolbox to help you formulate your comment.  The regulator will use the project description and the comments only to make the determination if this stays as a federal assessment so it matters.

We need you now more than ever!

You can go directly to the IAAC website to comment and learn more here:

https://iaac-aeic.gc.ca/050/evaluations/proj/90533

Or you can visit our St. Mary’s River Association webpage tool kit as your guide here:

https://www.stmarysriverassociation.com/15-mile-processing-hub-project.html

It’s time to stop proposing open pit gold mining in pristine ecosystems!  Please add your name to our petition. Talk to municipal counselors, provincial MLAs, and federal MPs about your support for St. Mary's River and Sheet Harbor system's need for a federal assessment and why it matters.

St. Mary’s River becomes Canada’s first Ecologically Significant Area candidate!  Watch our short video of the announcement here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWE8XTSVkA8&t=9s

Donations can be sent to:  https://www.stmarysriverassociation.com/donations.html   If donating please indicate N.O.P.E. donation