Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman and members of the committee.
As Thomas introduced me earlier, my name is Dionne Filiatrault. I'm the executive director for the Nunavut Water Board. I'm speaking to you today about the board's funding constraints. Given the vast territory, the obligation to hold hearings in communities most directly affected, working in three languages, and the limited capacity of people and communities to engage in the regulatory process, the cost of fulfilling the mandate of the boards is high.
In recent years there is clearly an increased emphasis being placed on economic development in the north. The Government of Canada has committed billions of dollars to Canada's northern strategy, yet the boards have not been informed of parallel increases in the funding to respond to this increased development. To be effective, the Nunavut Impact Review Board and the water board must have adequate financial and administrative resources to hire, train, and retain qualified staff and to ensure that the necessary systems are developed to communicate requirements and track a wide range of project proposals and related applications.
The reality for both boards is that there has not been a long-term funding contract in place since 2003. With the exception of supplemental core budget increases in 2007, the boards are operating under the 1993 funding allocations. The work of the boards is project-driven. In order to fund core staff needed as a result of growth, the boards have cut out basics necessary to maintain the organization.
As an example, for the Nunavut Impact Review Board, there has been no core funding available to fund non-beneficiary board and staff professional development in over a decade. All beneficiary training has been funded through outside sources, which is administratively complex and uncertain. Both boards are committed to hiring and training Inuit beneficiaries, with more than 50% of the employees in this category. Fulfilling this part of the Nunavut land claim agreement mandate has been possible only because of training resources provided by the Nunavut Implementation Training Committee, NITC. The NITC was funded through a single one-time grant negotiated as part of the NLCA. In April 2010 the boards were advised by NITC that unless new funding could be negotiated, as was expected in 2003, all training programs would be discontinued within two years. This will severely constrain the boards in their efforts to train Inuit beneficiaries, particularly for senior positions within the organization.
If economic development potential in the north is a key objective of the federal government, it is the board's view that equal measures to promote and support the regulatory regimes are required to effectively and efficiently fulfill the commitments made in the Nunavut land claims agreement.
The boards rely on Indian and Northern Affairs Canada for the administration of core funding and funding for public hearings. The boards are taking active steps with the Nunavut implementation branch of INAC to eliminate existing roadblocks in the funding process. Recommendations from the boards to remove funding barriers include completion of negotiations for a ten-year funding program, including streamlining and clarifying core and public hearing activities that are eligible for funding; improving communication and reporting systems, including increased consistency and training for Indian and Northern Affairs Canada personnel assigned to work with the boards on funding; establishing an effective procedure for future funding negotiations; and assessing long-term cost advantages of new initiatives to streamline processes and provide mechanisms for early funding when long-term advantages support the change.
You should know that in parallel, the boards are actively working to improve internal processes and coordinate impact assessment and the water licensing processes. Together, and with input from a broad range of stakeholders, including industry, the boards have developed a detailed coordinated process framework to address requests from proponents to proceed with the impact review and water licensing in a coordinated manner. Both boards are also impacted by resource constraints in federal and territorial departments and agencies and at the community government level.
The boards rely on the participation of all levels of government. Further, the water licensing regime relies on Indian and Northern Affairs Canada to carry out inspections and enforce water licences. There are currently six inspectors, three for land and three for water, for 28 communities and developments spread across 22 million square kilometres.
The new legislation that Stephanie spoke about earlier contemplates further enforcement responsibilities for Indian and Northern Affairs, making increased resources even more critical.
In light of serious compliance issues with municipal licences, the Nunavut Water Board staff recently hosted a series of workshops for all of the parties involved. However, it is clear to the boards that compliance requires additional resources to support essential community infrastructure. Accordingly, the boards recommend a review of federal and territorial resources available and required to fulfill the NLCA functions and reduce barriers to development in the north. The boards also encourage INAC to give attention to the impact its decision-making processes have on the overall timelines for impact assessment and water licensing in Nunavut.
Of significance, the Nunavut Water Board is also actively engaged with INAC, the Government of Nunavut, and Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated in the development of water regulations for Nunavut. This includes a mechanism to simplify the approval requirements for minor use projects. Ultimately, the goals of water regulations developed specifically for Nunavut are to address deficiencies in the application of the current regulations and provide increased clarity to the water licensing process. Operationally and administratively, the regulations are a good step towards improving the regulatory system in Nunavut, in that they provide clarity and are understandable, consistent, and enforceable.
Moving forward, the NIRB and the water board recommend that they be fully engaged in the implementation planning for new land use planning and impact assessment legislation and water regulations, and that we be adequately resourced to ensure the organizations and systems are in place to effectively and efficiently implement the new requirements prior to the new laws coming into force.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.