Madam Chair, honourable members, I thank you for the opportunity to be here today and hope that my input will be useful in your deliberations.
I'm here representing the Makivik Corporation with regard to BillC-69, and particularly with regard to the impact assessment act included therein.
Makivik Corporation is the birthright organization established in 1975 to represent Nunavik Inuit ethnic rights, pursuant to the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement. It was the first modern land claim agreement in Canada. Makivik, in Inuktitut, means “To Rise Up”, which was a very fitting name for the organization mandated to protect Nunavik Inuit rights, interests, and financial compensation that were provided by the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement.
Most recently, Makivik also signed the Nunavik Inuit Land Claims Agreement, which has been in effect since 2008. Through this agreement, Makivik, on behalf of the Nunavummiut, the residents of Nunavik, own 80% of all of the islands, including both the surface and subsurface rights in the Nunavik Marine Region, the region defined under the land claims agreement.
Because of habit I will clarify now that the JBNQA is the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement, and NILCA is the Nunavik Inuit Land Claims Agreement, and I usually use the acronyms so there's a chance they'll slip out.
I am a resource management coordinator for Makivik in the resource development department. I've been entrusted by the Inuit of Nunavik to speak here on their behalf and when it comes to environmental issues and their potential impacts on Inuit rights. I am not here today to provide an in-depth review of the proposed legislation or its potential impacts on Nunavik Inuit, but instead will speak to you about the core concepts about which our understanding of the impact assessment process are based.
Nunavik Inuit are not opposed to development. They recognize that large-scale development projects can represent significant economic potential for our regions and our communities. However, we also recognize that even the smallest projects can have significant impacts on the environment and on the Inuit way of life. This is especially true when we consider the fact that Nunavik is one of the most pristine areas in Canada, and that wildlife harvesting is still a major component of food security.
Because of this there is an expectation within our communities that development projects will not be allowed to proceed unless every precaution has been taken to ensure that they are compatible with our understanding and respect for the environment, and that they uphold the maintenance of Inuit livelihoods, traditional practices, and the cultural identity.
As you know, I represent a region where governments have historically taken a top-down, colonialist approach to determining what is in the public interest. Of course, I am referring to events such as the High Arctic relocation, residential schools, and the dog slaughter, all of which were seen by governments at the time as being a benefit to Inuit. It's safe to say that Nunavik Inuit do not generally trust southerners and governments to determine what is in their best interest. The assurance that impact assessments will be conducted by people who are familiar with the region, the people, their culture, and their day-to-day reality is therefore critical.
For this reason the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement and the NILCA have laid a framework for environmental, social, and impact assessments to be conducted by bodies whose members give Inuit a direct role in the assessments. These bodies are essentially tasked with applying federal laws of general application in a manner that is consistent with the particularities of our region, and in a culturally appropriate way. It's critical that the provisions and spirits of these agreements be upheld by any federal legislation that's put in place by the government, including Bill C-68 and BillC-69.
Last week you heard a similar message from Mr. Bill Namagoose, who was here representing the Crees of Eeyou Istchee. He provided you with a relatively detailed overview of the federal social environmental assessment regime that was included in section 22 of the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement. Mr. Namagoose correctly explained that under this regime the COFEX should be the sole body responsible for federal assessments on the Cree territory of the JBNQA.
I assume that you're already familiar with the JBNQA, but I will nonetheless take the opportunity to remind you that section 23 of the agreement is actually essentially a carbon copy of the regime that Mr. Namagoose presented to you, the main difference being that the body responsible for assessments is called the COFEX-North and applies to the Inuit territory.
The COFEX-North's membership is composed of representatives who are appointed by the Inuit and by the federal government.
Similarly, under the Nunavik Inuit Land Claims Agreement, the Nunavik Marine Region Planning Commission and the Nunavik Marine Region Impact Review Board were created to oversee the impact assessment process in the offshore region. For each of these bodies, half of the members are appointed based on nominations put forward by Nunavik Inuit through Makivik Corporation, and the other half are appointed by governments.
In either case, the impact assessment regimes that are included within our land claims agreements are the outcome of extensive and careful negotiations. They are sensitive to the particular circumstances of the region and have been constructed with the rights of Nunavik Inuit in mind. Perhaps more importantly, they are relevant to and trusted by Nunavik Inuit. There is no need to add another layer of federal assessment to them.
The written submission we have provided to you outlines a number of inconsistencies between the text of Bill C-69 and the provisions of our land claims agreement. These relate to matters such as the project screening phase, the impact assessment agency's role in impact assessment, legislated timelines, and so on.
A relatively straightforward example of that is the fact that, under the JBNQA, a project screening committee was established to determine whether or not to assess projects that are not automatically subject to or excluded from review. Within the proposed act, this would fall upon the agency to do. There are some inconsistencies, and you'll understand that we can't support the creation of federal law and legislation that conflicts with the provisions of our constitutionally protected rights and processes.
Although we acknowledge that the proposed impact assessment act includes provisions that allow for substitution or harmonization, we are concerned that they won't be implemented to their full potential, leaving us with an extra layer of federal impact assessment.
Mr. Namagoose proposed last week that the new legislation allow for a carve-out of the JBNQA's section 22 process as it applies to the Cree territory. I will repeat his request today and ask that the process for federal environmental and social impact assessments that was described in section 23 of the James Bay Northern Quebec Agreement and the process defined in sections 6 and 7 of the NILCA be recognized explicitly in the act. Failing that, it is critical that negotiations to establish the appropriate regulations or agreements be initiated such that the direct participation of Nunavik Inuit in all impact assessment decisions is retained.
I won't venture too far into the debate about consent at this stage. I recognize it's an issue that was debated at length here, in other forums, and in our written submission to this committee. However, I will note that we are troubled by the fact that the proposed legislation does not require the minister—or the agency, as the case may be—to obtain the consent of indigenous groups before authorizing works to proceed.
We certainly agree that the proposed early engagement phase will be beneficial towards obtaining the consent, but as Andrea outlined, we are worried that the act will allow for unilateral decisions by the minister that can affect the constitutionally protected rights of indigenous peoples without needing to obtain their consent.
Finally, I wish to draw your attention to another organization that was born out of the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement—the Kativik Environmental Advisory Committee. The committee is composed of equal representation from the Inuit, the Quebec government, and the Government of Canada. Within the act, the advisory committee is defined as a consultative body to responsible governments and is the preferential and official forum for responsible governments concerning their involvement in the formulation of laws and regulations related to the environmental and social protection regime. It is mandated to oversee the administration and management of the regime through the free exchange of respective views, concerns, and information.
While Makivik Corporation has been actively engaged in this file for some time now, it appears that the Kativik Environmental Advisory Committee has been greatly underutilized by the Government of Canada throughout this process. I must therefore stress the importance that you take the necessary steps to engage with them before the new legislation is adopted. They have been involved in the implementation of the JBNQA impact assessment regime for over 40 years and have tremendous insights to offer.
More importantly though, their participation is required through the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement.
Thank you for your time.