Alberta country music star calls on public to reject renewed application for coal project

Northback Holdings, formerly known as Benga Mining, has applied to the Alberta Energy Regulator to allow it to initiate coal mine exploration in the Rocky Mountains.

The company that had its application for a coal exploration project in the eastern slopes of the Rockies cancelled by the Canadian government is trying to revive the idea.

However, an Alberta country music star hopes there's enough opposition left to cancel the project again.

Northback Holdings, formerly known as Benga Mining, applied to the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) for exploration, drilling and water diversion licences in September for an area just north of the Crowsnest Pass.

Corb Lund, who has long been a vocal advocate of protecting the Rocky Mountain foothills from coal mining, is rejecting the new idea altogether and wants Albertans to do the same.

He is urging all Albertans to file statements of concern to the AER over the project or contact their local representatives.

"I'm not anti-resource as usual, I'm also non-partisan; I don't really trust any politician. But this particular idea, resource extraction aside, is a particularly dumb one," he said on social media this week.

"It's a stupid idea with very little in it for Alberta except for a handful of jobs and a huge clean up bill and ruined water."

Northback's original plan for an open-pit coal mine project on the eastern slopes of the Rockies was blocked by the Canadian government in 2021.

The federal government said the project would seriously damage water, wildlife, plant life and the heritage of Canada's First Nations.

The deadline to file statements of concern with the AER is on Friday.