A member of the Lac La Ronge Indian Band is helping break barriers in Saskatchewan’s mining industry while operating one of the most specialized pieces of equipment in the world.
Taryn Roske works as a Jet Boring System operator at Cameco’s Cigar Lake Mine.
The position makes her the first Indigenous woman in the world to operate the specialized mining system.
“The JBS is the Jet Boring System. It was specially designed for Cigar Lake,” Roske explained. “Essentially what it is, is high-pressure water that we use to cut through the ore body.”
Roske’s path to the position began in 2010 when she joined Cameco as a radiation technician at Rabbit Lake. After working at several northern operations, including Key Lake and Cigar Lake, she developed an interest in the JBS system and eventually applied for an opening.
“I worked really hard and one of the supervisors came up to me and said, ‘You should really apply for the JBS one of these times when we have a position come open,'” she recalled.
Roske has now spent five years as a JBS operator.
She said becoming the first Indigenous woman in the role has opened doors to speak with youth about careers in mining and science.
“It has honestly meant the world to me, and I’ve been given a lot of really good opportunities since getting this position,” she said.
Roske has participated in events promoting women in STEM fields and has shared her story with Indigenous students across Canada.
“I ended up being the first woman to do this job, and I’m breaking ground. I’m an advocate for women in mining and Indigenous people, proving that we can do what we set our minds to.”
Roske credits the strong women in her family for helping her succeed.
“I often thank my mother and my kookum for building such a strong woman in me,” she said. “It was nice having really strong women raising me and being able to make them proud of who I’ve become.”
Today, Roske’s story stands as an example of the growing role Indigenous workers continue to play in Saskatchewan’s mining industry and the opportunities available in the province’s northern resource sector.
(TOP PHOTO – Taryn Roske poses for a photo at the Cigar Lake mine in northern Saskatchewan. Photo by Joel Willick)