Environmentalists staged a protest in downtown Vancouver on Wednesday to voice their opposition to a proposed copper mine in Clayoquot Sound, but the area's native leaders say they support the project.

The Friends of Clayoquot Sound and the Western Canada Wilderness Committee are opposed to a plan by Imperial Metals Corporation to mine Catface Mountain, about 13 kilometres north of Tofino on the West Coast of Vancouver Island.

But the proposed mine site is inside the traditional territory of the Ahousaht First Nation and Chief John Frank said the environmental groups should talk to the band before they start protesting, otherwise the issue will end in confrontation.

Protester Dan Lewis said environmentalists recognize the Ahousaht's financial needs, but believe there has to be a better way for the band to make money.

Environmentalists and local First Nations formed an uneasy alliance in the 1980s and '90s to protest logging of the old growth temperate rainforest in Clayoquot Sound.

The protests led to the largest mass arrest in Canada's history and a decision by the provincial government to protect large areas of the watershed.

But the alliance broke down in recent years as five local First Nations signed deals to permit logging within areas under their control.