Minerals explorer Canada Carbon said on Monday that it was appealing a decision by Quebec’s agricultural land protection commission that threatened to derail its flagship Miller graphite project, warning the ruling could have broader consequences for the province’s critical minerals ambitions.

The Commission de Protection du Territoire Agricole du Québec (CPTAQ) rejected Canada Carbon’s application to advance the Miller project in Grenville-sur-la-Rouge, citing concerns about impacts on agricultural land and insufficient evidence of economic benefit. 

Canada Carbon said that the ruling, issued March 18, contradicted a prior conditional endorsement by the commission in 2020.

“This is an inexplicable and worrying decision that will have a significant negative impact on the development of projects related to critical and strategic minerals,” the company said in a statement.

The Vancouver-based firm argues the CPTAQ failed to follow principles requiring the harmonisation of mining and agriculture and did not make reasonable efforts to reconcile the project with surrounding land uses. Canada Carbon said its revised application addressed previous concerns, and that the commission’s current stance was not only internally inconsistent, but also in conflict with its own earlier findings.

In 2020, the CPTAQ issued a preliminary positive orientation for the project, noting poor soil quality, challenging topography, and limited agricultural potential at the site. The commission also acknowledged that potential environmental impacts such as dust, water use, and noise would fall under the jurisdiction of other permitting bodies.

“All of these things were true then and are even truer today,” the company said, pointing to updates made in its second application. It added that the commission’s reasoning – such as citing maple production risks after previously dismissing them – undermined the decision’s validity.

Canada Carbon is seeking to reverse the ruling via appeal to the Tribunal Administratif du Québec.

"I am deeply troubled by the CPTAQ's decision regarding the Miller graphite project. We feel that the CPTAQ erred on several points of law in its decision,” said CEO Ellerton Castor. “We have therefore appealed this decision and are confident that it will be overturned by the Tribunal Administratif du Québec.”

Castor warned that the decision could deter future investment in Quebec’s critical minerals sector.

“I'm also concerned about the signal this sends regarding the development of future mining projects in Quebec. This decision is completely at odds with the government's articulated objectives and Premier Legault's recent statements on the need to accelerate the development and exploitation of Quebec's critical and strategic minerals, of which graphite is one.”

Canada Carbon said the Miller deposit was one of only two known graphite sources of its type globally, and that the material’s properties made it suitable for nuclear energy applications.

The company holds two historic graphite properties: the Miller and Asbury mines, both in Quebec. It is pursuing development of high-purity graphite for industrial and energy use, while committing to high environmental and social standards.