The company is located in Interior Alaska, a company is set to begin production at a massive gold mine close to The Native Village located in Tetlin. The former tribal chief of the area greenlit the mine and also leased access to mineral exploration right for a mining company, currently run by Kinross Alaska.
However, according to an report in The magazine Grist Kinross has a deal with the Tetlin Native Corporation and some tribe members are unhappy over the deal, claiming decades of self-serving and corrupt agreements between tribal leaders and Kinross.
Kinross denied the allegations and claims they’ve done so on good-faith.
The Grist’s journalist Lois Parshley says the saga of the Manh Choh Mine dates back years, and has led to disputes about who is the owner of the land in Tetlin.
Listen:
This video interview is edited lightly to improve clarity and length.
Lisa ParshleyTo know what’s going in this case, I must go farther back in time to Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act that granted an Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act that granted Tetlin Native Corporation, a tribe located in Interior Alaska, 743,000 acres. And, unlike other village corporations, Tetlin had rights to its subsurface resources like minerals. In the 90s chief Donald Adams was both chief and the president of the corporation. In his capacity as chief, he was able to apply for an casino license, however it was refused because the tribal corporation held the land belonging to the tribe. To solve the issue the Chief Adams transferred approximately 640,000 acres of land from corporate ownership to tribal council. The corporation was then insolvent, and its shareholders, who had never endorsed the transfer, filed suit. In the end, however, the Alaska Supreme Court eventually held that Chief Adams had abused his authority by executing this “wrongful move.”
Before the new deed was made the Chief Adams agreed to sign a mineral lease together with an exploration firm during a closed-door discussion. The lease included 40,000 acres, greater than what it was the Tetlin Native Corporation was ever given. The company also employed Chief Adams as a consultant and paid him over $250,000. This was in violation of tribal law, however the details the details were under wraps for many years. In a notarized account the tribal council members stated that they were stunned when they got the lease. The lease is still in force today. Kinross Alaska, the majority owner and current manager of this project is constructing a massive open pit mine named Manh Choh on the land.
Wesley Early:So Adams passed away in the year 2015. What was the reaction of Tetlin’s local authorities following his death respond to this mining?
L.P.After chief Adams died in the year 2000, a man whose name was Michael Sam was elected, and new members were added to on the tribe’s council. However, the changes in the leadership of the tribe didn’t bring about any resolution. The general manager for the company was seated to talk with Chief Sam in 2016, the meeting notes show that Chief Sam was not knowledgeable about the mine. However, the chief “stressed the fact that it was his choice to see miners go.”
I was unable to speak with Chief Sam. Chief Sam did not respond to repeated requests for interviews. However, it appears that somewhere along the way, his views about Kinross changed. A tribal member is gathering signatures to determine whether Chief Sam or another tribal official receives payments from Kinross that haven’t yet been disclosed to the public.
Wesley Early:You provide evidence of corruption allegations at an area Tetlin Native Corporation in your article. What does the corporation’s officials say that transpired with regard to The mine as well as Kinross?
The Lois Parshley family:In in addition to consulting fees, the lease reveals chief Adams also approved a finding fee to the person who referred him to Mining Company. The lease referred to him as an “friend to the tribe” and the agreement stipulates that the heirs of his will be paid 10 percent of any future net income from exploration of mineral resources on the land, for perpetuity. It’s not clear who was aware when the tribe was able to surrender many of its gains. In the end, Tetlin will only receive royalties ranging from 3 and five percent in the Manh Choh mine. Manh Choh, though similar mines in Alaska typically offer tribes better returns and sometimes even the possibility of a partial ownership.
It is also claiming that Tetlin Native Corporation also alleges that the joint mining venture falsely represented the tribal council to the state as well as the SEC as a village-based corporation, something that anyone who is familiar with the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act can confirm is not feasible. Perhaps most important they’re claiming that at the very least, a portion of the mine is currently being developed on the 100,000 acres that the corporation has always occupied.
Wesley The Early Years:So with all of the tribal members’ concerns and lawsuits, where do you place in the Manh Choh mine right now?
Lis ParshleyIn the midst of all these accusations The project is subject to another lawsuit. Kinross plans to transport ore over 250 miles along the public roads from to the mining site in Tetlin towards Fort Knox outside of Fairbanks which has caused lots of anxiety from locals. It also requires replacing bridges as well as other road improvements. It is the Federal Highway Administration says Alaska’s Department of Transportation didn’t follow the appropriate procedure for putting bridge replacements in the document governing the state’s plan.
A lawsuit, filed this month by a citizens group has sought an injunction to force that the Department of Transportation to follow its own rules prior to allowing Kinross ore be transported through public roads. However, despite these issues the mine is scheduled to start production by the close this year.
