VANCOUVER—Jumbo Glacier Resort may still have a chance after the B.C. Supreme Court ruled Friday that the developer’s environmental certificate should not have been ended by the province.

Glacier Resorts Limited has been embroiled in legal battles over the development of the Jumbo Glacier Resort site near Invermere, involving both the time frame of the development and the consent of the Ktunaxa Nation, which considers the site sacred ground.

In 2015, then minister of the environment Mary Polack ruled that the project’s Environmental Assessment Certificate (EAC) had expired, as projects outlined in the plan had not been “substantially started” by its 10-year deadline.

But the developer appealed that decision on the grounds that it was unreasonable. In Friday’s ruling, Justice Carla Forth said Glacier has shown an intent to complete the project within the stated time frame.

“This is not a case in which Glacier showed a casual or dilatory approach to this project or the granting of the EAC ... Glacier’s actions demonstrated an understanding and desire to get on with the project within a reasonable amount of time once the EAC was issued.”

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A statement released by Glacier Resorts Limited said the company will “ask the province to carry out the judge’s instructions expeditiously, as noted.”

Environmental advocates, who have been protesting against the development since it began, expressed disappointment in the ruling.

John Bergenske, spokesperson of the group Wildsight, said in a statement that delays in the environmental assessment — which Glacier said were due to factors outside their control — were the fault of the company.

“There’s a lot in the decision about the slow-moving bureaucratic process, but having been deeply involved in this fight for years, we know that Glacier’s own delays in meeting the deadline were a major factor,” said Bergenske.

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He added that the resort would be built on the habitat of grizzly bears, negatively affecting their population.

“The construction of this project would fragment a critical section of one of North America’s most important wildlife corridors — an area grizzlies depend on to maintain healthy populations regionally and even continentally. We remain committed to doing all that we can to ensure this region is protected.”

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