Indigenous and Northern Affairs Committee on Nov. 24th, 2009

[Roger Gaudet, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

My question is for Mr. Maurice.

Are there fish here?

[Jeffrey Maurice]

Thank you for your question, Mr. Gaudet.

Yes, there are fish here. Nunavut is rich in turbot, shrimp, and char.

[Roger Gaudet, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

What is your annual harvest?

[Jeffrey Maurice]

In terms of our harvest levels, for turbot we have a quota in 0A of about 6,500 metric tonnes. In 0B we have a quota of 1,500 metric tonnes—actually it is 3,000 metric tonnes now, with this new announcement. For shrimp I'd have to look at the numbers again, but it's roughly around 14% of the existing quota. I don't know what the exact figure is for that. It's around 13,000 metric tonnes.

[Roger Gaudet, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

That is a huge quantity of fish.

As you pointed out, you get 10% of the fishery budget. So out of $12 million, you get $1.2 million. What do you do with that money?

[Jeffrey Maurice]

It's currently up to the existing players what they do, but the co-management partners in the past few years have been encouraging industry to reinvest in their fishery, so the four major players in the offshore fishing industry are 50% or more owners in the vessels they use. They are investing in training Inuit to work in the offshore fishing industry. They are investing in their own business, basically, but it has been a long way. It has been a long time coming, basically, and this has been something that has been recent.

[Roger Gaudet, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

That money will not build you harbours, I admit, but there are infrastructure programs through the federal government. And I know that Nunavut receives more than $1 billion a year in the form of transfers.

Could you set up programs to build harbours, not 25 in the same year, of course, but one every now and then, in order to support the turbot, shrimp and other fisheries? It would be a boon to your economy.

[Jeffrey Maurice]

Thank you for your question.

I really wish there were. Since Nunavut has its own land claims agreement, we don't get access to the aboriginal fisheries strategy. We don't get access to Marshall money. So Nunavut really needs its own specific federal programs to develop its fishery. We are unique from that perspective, and I think that is why you've been seeing both government and industry in the past five or ten years investing heavily in research, heavily in offshore research, and heavily in their own fishing vessels without the assistance of the federal government.

[Roger Gaudet, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

Mr. Cousins, you said earlier that your association was a non-profit organization. How many organizations do you oversee?

[Glenn Cousins]

Thank you for the question.

There are four non-profit Inuit economic development organizations under the regional Inuit associations. There is one for each region plus a fourth, which is pan-territorial in nature and delivers a program across the full territory. So altogether there are four of these non-profit economic development organizations.

[Roger Gaudet, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Thank you, Mr. Gaudet.

Mr. Clarke, I think you said you were okay with questions.

Does anyone else on the other side wish to ask a question? No.

We have a couple of minutes left here, Mrs. Hughes, if you have a short question.

[Carol Hughes, NDP, Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing, ON]

I know you've mentioned INAC a number of times. I just wonder whether you have any frustrations in your interactions with that and your inability to probably get some of the funding advanced. Again, on the infrastructure stimulus, have you been able to get some infrastructure stimulus money, have you been denied projects, and which projects have they been?

[The Chair, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

I realize that was a big question. If we keep to a fairly short response, Mr. Lévesque can ask a very brief question as well. So just take a couple of minutes, maximum, if you could, Mr. Kaludjak.

[Paul Kaludjak]

Okay. Very quickly, I want to answer some of the gentleman's question about the construction. Yes, there was an impact on the construction part in Nunavut, which to some degree slowed down overall. That affected the growth of the territory, I suppose, in the sense that fewer projects were given to Nunavut as a result of the market slowdown. We could see that in many of the communities—just to let you know that.

In terms of difficulties with INAC, that's why we have litigation under the claim, because we didn't see anything happening. We're challenging the federal government in court to get the land claim implemented fully. It's about 50% implemented. That would be our downfall where nothing is happening. To make sure something was happening, we were forced to challenge the government on the claim.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

I believe the other question was on the infrastructure stimulus.

[Paul Kaludjak]

Yes. In terms of the northern strategy and the stimulus package, there was a positive effect on the housing part, where there was $200 million given, and I believe there is an additional $100 million forthcoming. That really helped the territory in terms of progress.

In terms of the other northern initiatives, we weren't clear whether CanNor was a new thing or old money. That's something we're trying to figure out, whether it's stimulus money or not. Those are the things that are uncertain for us, from our standpoint.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Okay, we'll have to leave it at that.

Mr. Lévesque.

[Yvon Lévesque, Bloc, Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou, QC]

A company ships to Nunavut and Nunavik by boat during the period of the year when passage is possible. Are you partners with that company?

Could you also tell me how long that period of the year lasts? We know that it is getting a bit longer every year. Thank you.

[Paul Kaludjak]

Yes, we have an interest in the cargo services in Nunavut. A lot of our ships come from Montreal, and a lot of cargo is moved from there to here, and throughout Nunavut now. It's through what we call NEAS, Nunavut Eastern Arctic Shipping Inc. Through that process, through our corporations, we have a partnership. The three that I know of each own about a 25% interest in the shipping company.

The shipping starts usually around the end of June, if it's early—late would be second week of July—until as late as end of October. It depends on the season; it varies. Sometimes the tankers come in very late, like in October when it's freezing up, like now. The shipping seems to last a little bit longer each year.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Okay. We're basically out of time.

Thank you very much, members.

To our witnesses, we appreciate the succinctness of your responses. We covered a lot of ground here in a fairly short time.

We will now be suspending, but before we do, I'd like to go back to Mr. Bagnell.

I know members will express this individually as well, but if you have the opportunity to convey to Monsieur Bélanger on our behalf our condolences on the loss of his mother, I'm sure the members would all concur.

Members, we'll be suspending now until 1 p.m. We will be resuming here in this room.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

We're going to resume consideration for our third panel today. This is continuing our consideration of the advancement of northern economic development. In this particular case we're in the region of Nunavut, the territory known as Nunavut. We're delighted to be here.

We welcome Mr. Brooke Clements this morning. I think Mr. Clements was with us earlier this morning and also had the benefit of hearing from some of our other witnesses. Mr. Clements represents Peregrine Diamonds Ltd. We are still expecting two of our other witnesses. They will be joining us as the proceedings continue.

Before we get under way with our witnesses and presentations, I want to let members know--and I know you will be quite disappointed to hear--the witness we had scheduled for this evening from 7:30 to 9:00 unfortunately has had to cancel. We will not be resuming our meeting after 7:30 this evening. We'll continue on that basis.

I see that Manasie Mark has joined us as well. Mr. Mark is the Sealift Administrator for Nunavut Sealink & Supply Inc. I am delighted to have you here today. As I mentioned, members, we are still expecting one other witness from the Amarok Hunters & Trappers Association. They had confirmed, so we'll hope to see somebody from the association soon.

Let's begin with Mr. Clements. Go ahead. You have up to ten minutes, and then we'll proceed to the next presentation.

[Brooke Clements, President, Peregrine Diamonds Ltd.]

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Bonjour, mesdames et messieurs.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman and committee, for the invitation to appear before the committee.

Today I want to talk to you about the mining and exploration industry and the important role it can play in the economic development of Nunavut.

Nunavut has the right kind of geology to host major mineral deposits. However, it's a vast, remote territory with logistical and weather conditions that challenge even the most determined explorationist. As a result, Nunavut remains under-explored for minerals when compared with more accessible regions of Canada. Consequently, Nunavut offers great potential to make large-scale, elephant-size discoveries starting with grassroots exploration.

Three major mines, namely Nanisivik, Lupin, and Polaris, opened in what is now Nunavut between 1976 and 1982. These operations generated significant employment, training, and other economic benefits for local communities and the territory as a whole. All three of these mines are now closed.

The Meadowbank gold mine near Baker Lake, scheduled to commence production in the first quarter of 2010, is the first major mine to open in Nunavut since 1982. Already, the Baker Lake, Rankin Inlet, and the Kivalliq region in general are seeing significant benefits from this development.

In my opinion, mining has the greatest potential to produce significant economic development opportunities for the people of Nunavut in the near term. History tells us there are few other economic development options for Nunavut that could generate the economic and social benefits that responsible mineral development can bring.

Since 2005 my company, Peregrine, a junior diamond explorer, has managed a total of $30 million in exploration expenditures in Nunavut because of its great geologic potential. These expenditures have resulted in the discovery of two promising diamond districts: Chidliak, which is located about 120 kilometres northeast of here, and Nanuq, 250 kilometres north of Rankin Inlet. At Chidliak my company spent $9.2 million this year and in Nanuq, $1.5 million. A significant portion of that went to local goods and services and local employees.

Just for reference, BHP Billiton, the world's largest mining company and the operator of the Ekati mine in the Northwest Territories, is our partner at Chidliak.

While mineral development in Nunavut presents many challenges, there are four that I want to focus on this afternoon: land use planning, regulatory capacity, worker training, and geoscience funding.

Draft legislation for land use planning and impact assessment for Nunavut is expected to be introduced in the House of Commons soon. It's essential that this legislation recognize the irreplaceable role that mining can play in the responsible development of Nunavut's economy. The legislation should promote efficient and timely advancement of projects at all phases of the exploration and mining cycle. Industry should be recognized as a valuable partner in drafting and finalizing land use plans that will be developed under the legislation.

Very importantly, it's critical to include industry's input and consider potential mineral resources before establishing zones or areas where mineral exploration and development will be limited or even prohibited. If that doesn't happen, if you don't get industry's input, then important opportunities for long-term sustainable development in Nunavut could be lost.

If the regulatory regime in Nunavut is to fulfill its intended purposes, it is essential to ensure that qualified individuals are appointed to the many board positions that need to be filled and that the appointees receive appropriate training and support. There has been a lot of progress in the last 10 years, but I think we have a little way to go yet.

Government should consider the establishment of an independent body to support northern boards and commissions. This recommendation is spelled out clearly in the joint submission that the exploration and mining industry made to the northern regulatory improvement initiative in 2008. If this is done it will not only help Nunavut, it will also help the NWT, where the growing pains under the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act are widely recognized.

Exploration and mining industry success in Nunavut will create a large number of both skilled and entry-level positions in the territory. As an example, even though our two projects are early-stage exploration projects, this year we employed 18 people from Pangnirtung and Iqaluit at Chidliak and a person from Repulse and a person from Rankin on our smaller Nanuq project.

Great effort should be put toward establishing training programs in the communities, ideally in collaboration with industry. That would prepare the residents of Nunavut for careers in the mining industry. There are some initiatives in this area right now, but I think it can be improved, and you heard a fair amount about that this morning. Also very critical, supporting and improving the K-to-12 and post-secondary education facilities in the communities can pay great dividends.

Finally, it's important for the exploration industry to have a good foundation of geologic information for the areas they are exploring. So it's important that the various geoscience programs active in the north continue to get funded to provide this baseline information for industry.

To summarize, mineral exploration and mining offer the possibility of significant sustainable development and capacity building for the people of Nunavut. This is clearly illustrated by the current development of the Meadowbank gold mine near Baker Lake and of course by the history of Polaris, Nanisivik, and Lupin. I urge you to keep an eye on Meadowbank and monitor for yourselves the beneficial impacts that Nunavut's latest mine will have on the Kivalliq region and the territory as a whole. Establishing a mine is a rare occurrence. It's very difficult. Exploration is expensive and a high-risk investment.

I urge the members of the committee to do everything possible to encourage and facilitate responsible mineral exploration and development throughout the north and in particular in Nunavut, where meaningful opportunities for employment are so clearly needed.

Thank you very much.

Thank you very much.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Thank you very much, Mr. Clements.

Now we'll go to Mr. Manasie Mark. We'll go ahead with your presentation for up to ten minutes. Go ahead, please.

[Manasie Mark, Sealift Administrator, Nunavut Sealink & Supply Inc.]

Hello. My name is Manasie Mark. I'm a Sealift Administrator here in Iqaluit for Nunavut Sealink and Supply Inc., NSSI. I've been doing these this job for almost a year now.

It's a pleasure for NSSI to be here and have the opportunity to give our input and thoughts to the committee. I'm still new in the business, but with the help of my colleague, we have prepared this talk.

I will do a brief presentation discussing the key role of maritime transportation in the economic development of the Arctic, the efforts made by NSSI to facilitate and enhance our services to sealift users, the obstacles we are facing, and some ideas that could help in resolving or at least diminishing these barriers.

We shall start by discussing the importance of maritime transportation and its major role in the economic development of the north.

First, even though transportation does have a major role in economic development, transportation options are limited due to the isolation of the communities and the far distances. Second, maritime transport is a solution to the isolation, so it becomes necessary to the economic development of the Arctic. There is a constant increase in the need for maritime transportation for regular resupplies, and we must not forget the demands for transport from the mining industry and for special projects.

Next, we shall discuss the efforts NSSI has been putting forward in improving services and better contributing towards northern economic development.

Major investments in the acquisition of several new and bigger vessels have increased our transportation capacity. These vessels are brand new, with higher lifting capacity. Also, the acquisition of new lightering equipment, such as bigger tugboats and barges, has contributed to the high quality of our services.

Adequate training sessions on forklifts and loader operations, lifting gear, health and safety, first aid courses and customer service techniques for personnel have given us more efficiency and security in providing a better service.

Our association with the Arctic Co-op and the FCNQ, the Fédération des coopératives du Nouveau-Québec, which is the co-op movement in Nunavik, northern Quebec, is allowing them to progress towards a better maximization of their maritime transportation activity. This benefits all ACL and FCNQ customers.

NSSI also participates actively in different meetings, studies, and requests, such as this one, to give our opinion on how to improve the maritime transportation industry and service in the Arctic.

Now we come to the obstacles we are facing. We will mainly discuss the lack of maritime infrastructure in the northern communities. First, the lack of infrastructure brings security and efficiency questions; second, the shipping season is limited due to the climate's ice, wind, and waves. The needs in maritime transportation are constantly increasing.

There is a slight possibility that the lack of adequate maritime infrastructure and support to the industry might eventually lead the transporters to reach their limit in terms of the value of cargo transported during the season.

Lack of infrastructure contributes to raising the risk of incidents or accidents, whether major or minor. The lack of logistics for maritime transportation, lack of knowledge and understanding within the staff of the private and public sectors, and the important turnovers of personnel in the north also contribute to this factor. Logistics knowledge is the key factor here in the north, because the shipping season is very short, and pretty much all the goods must be shipped during those three to four months.

Finally, we have put together some ideas and solutions to ameloriate the sealift as transportation and have continued to work with all the stakeholders to reach a common goal in terms of the best and appropriate type of infrastructure to put in place to push forward the projects and achieve the construction of maritime infrastructure, and to provide structured courses on logistics, whether given through an already established school or through conferences or symposiums in the training season. If necessary, we will form a permanent consultation committee in order to better plan the needs and be able to participate actively in the constantly growing economic development of the north.

This is my presentation. I think these points have given you our overall view of how NNSI sees some aspects of our role in economic development.

Naqurmiik. Thank you. Merci.