McGuinty evasive on uranium dispute intervention

Premier Dalton McGuinty has not signalled whether he plans to intervene in a dispute between a company that wants to develop uranium deposits in eastern Ontario and two First Nations communities in the area.

When asked on Wednesday about the letter sent by the Ardoch and Shabot Obaadjiwan Algonquins First Nations to his office on Tuesday, McGuinty told reporters he did not know enough about the situation to comment properly.

"But no doubt this situation also implicates the federal government," he said in French. "And if we have a role to play, we will play the part."

In the letter, the Algonquins announced they are pulling out of court proceedings launched by the mining exploration company Frontenac Ventures, which is suing them for $77 million after aboriginal protesters began blocking access to a site they want to develop for uranium mining.

The letter also asked Ontario for a moratorium on uranium exploration in the area near Sharbot Lake, about 60 kilometres north of Kingston, and to negotiate with their First Nations governments regarding the use, management and conservation of a region that they claim as their ancestral lands.

The Algonquins are concerned that uranium mining will contaminate water and cause other environmental damage to the land.

Locals divided over letter

Among local residents, the move has garnered mixed reviews.

Dawn King, a non-native resident of the area near the prospective mine site, supports it.

"It's a Canadian issue, it's a provincial issue," she said. "I'm assured if they were given the rights over this land, they'd be protecting it."

Local resident Ron Killingbeck disagreed.

"If you're preventing them (Frontenac Ventures) from making money and they're doing everything legal, then somebody's gotta be responsible for it."

The company launched a $77-million lawsuit against thetwo First Nationsin July and is seeking a court order to remove protesters from the entrance to a site.