Alberta will also keep in place a 1976 policy limiting access to coal miners, Energy Minister Sonya Savage said.
The government had been planning to revoke that policy and open up the eastern slopes of the Rockies to open-pit mines, but reversed course last year after a huge backlash from ranchers and other Albertans concerned about the environmental impact.
“It seems the government has listened to the majority of Albertans who care about our mountains and headwaters and do not want to see these lands degraded,” said Devon Earl, a conservation specialist with the Alberta Wilderness Association.
Friday’s decision comes in response to a report from Alberta’s independent Coal Policy Committee, which conducted a six-month review of the province’s coal policies and collected survey responses from more than 25,000 Albertans.
“We have heard the concerns of Albertans loud and clear and will work to improve public trust in how…
