Alberta regulator approves Northback coal mining project in Rockies

The Alberta Energy Regulator says it has approved Northback Holdings Corp.’s coal exploration project at the Grassy Mountain site on the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains.The controversial project was rejected in 2021, when a panel ruled the mine’s likely environmental effects on the fish and water quality outweighed potential economic benefits.The project was revived two years later and last year it was exempted from Alberta’s decision to ban open-pit coal mines because it was considered an advanced proposal.