A Pentagon-funded Quebec mining project does not meet with unanimous approval in Duhamel

Ever since mining company Lomiko Metals announced plans to set up a graphite mine in the Laurentians, some residents have been concerned that it could harm the environment. (Christian Hobden)

Residents of Quebec's Outaouais and Laurentians regions fear that a mining project near the municipality of Duhamel will harm the environment.

Opposition has even gained momentum following news of the U.S. Pentagon's possible involvement.

Last month, Canadian company Lomiko Metals announced that it had received a US$8.35 million (CAD$14.26 million) grant from the U.S. Department of Defense and CAD$4.9 million in funding from Natural Resources Canada to support further studies on the natural flake graphite project.

This mineral could be used in the manufacture of batteries for electric vehicles.

According to the Pentagon, the development of a graphite mine could strengthen the North American energy supply chain. The product could also be used "for military purposes".

The phrase is making residents like Louis Saint-Hilaire, a spokesperson for the Quebec Coalition of Lakes Incompatible with Mining, uncomfortable.

"At first, we were told it was an ecological project to make batteries for electric vehicles, but now we have serious doubts," he said.

Saint-Hilaire feared that the future mine would pollute several lakes in the region. Today, he's concerned about the possibility of the graphite being transformed into American military equipment.

Claude Bouffard, coordinator of the Association pour la protection de l'environnement du lac des Plages, recalled that the community did not give its consent to the mining project.

"It's almost like an invasion. It's a kind of betrayal by the mining company, the Quebec government, and worse still, the Canadian government," he said.

Lomiko Metal said it will conduct profitability and metallurgy studies over the next five years. All will be submitted to Quebec's environmental assessment agency (BAPE). Construction is scheduled to begin by 2027.

Natural Resources Minister Maïté Blanchette Vézina refused to comment on the Pentagon grant, but the project will have to be accepted by the local population before it can go ahead.

"The mining project must go hand in hand with social acceptability,” she said in a written statement.

The U.S. Department of Defense or the U.S. Consulate General did not respond to a request for an interview.

Jean-François Boulanger, professor of extractive metallurgy of critical and strategic elements at the Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue, says the type of purified graphite Lomiko is talking about is used to make batteries, but the unpurified version of the mineral can be used in steelmaking.

Graphite is an essential mineral in the manufacture of heavy military equipment, such as aircraft and armoured fighting vehicles.

Boulanger said it is unusual for a government to announce openly that it is investing in a mining project for reasons of national defence.

Teresa Kramarz of Toronto's Environmental Governance Lab says she's not surprised by the Pentagon's involvement. North American and European governments are investing heavily in the exploration of critical minerals such as graphite in order to reduce their dependence on Chinese exports.

She adds that allied countries are looking to strengthen their trade relations to secure their supply chains.

In a statement, the Canadian Ministry of Natural Resources said the funding does not mean that Lomiko Metals will give privileged access to graphite production to the US and Canadian governments.

Boulanger said he would be "very surprised" if these governments did not negotiate with the company on this matter.

Kramarz recalled that neighbouring communities fear that mining activities will disrupt ecosystems and make them too economically dependent. She added that the fear of being forced to move also plays a role in their opposition.

"People have to have a say in what happens to them. That's the democratic way," she said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on June 9, 2024.