VANCOUVER — A federal review panel says that a proposed copper-gold mine near Williams Lake will have "a significant adverse cumulative effect" on the environment, though it hasn't made any recommendations on whether the mine should go ahead or not, The Vancouver Sun reported.

The provincial government approved Taseko Mining's $800-million plan to eliminate Fish Lake by turning it into a tailings pond, which will be filled with waste from the mine. Despite the environmental effects, the province approved the project because of the mine's economic benefits. The Vancouver Sun adds that the company plans to create a fake lake to replace Fish Lake.

However, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency panel says that the project, named Prosperity, will hurt grizzly bear populations, fish habitats as well as the land used by the Tsilhoqot'in people.

"The independent panel's conclusions give us some faith in the process, and we feel it was the right decision to participate in the federal assessment," Chief Joe Alphonse, director of government services for the Tsilhoqot'in National Government wrote in an e-mail to The Vancouver Sun. "This is also a message to industry that companies need to show respect to first nations when they try to start projects on aboriginal lands."

The panel report now goes to the federal cabinet for approval.

Meanwhile, the president of the Mining Association of B.C. said in a news release that "We remain confident that the federal cabinet will see the significant benefits of this project and approve its development, just as the provincial government did."