From the NWMO's perspective, our engagement program with indigenous communities is quite critical to the success of our work. Without their indigenous knowledge coming to bear on the project, we would not be successful. We recognized that from the get-go. We've always felt that way as we've implemented our work.
As for individuals within any community—like Saugeen First Nation, since we're working in the South Bruce area, their traditional territory—it's very important for them to feel and understand how we've incorporated that knowledge.
As I mentioned, in the north, we had cultural monitors. We also had them when we were borehole-drilling in southern Ontario. Saugeen Ojibway Nation members came to our site and were there with us to monitor our activities and advise us on things we needed to do, which was very important to us. As I've already talked about, the importance of water to the SON is quite critical. We recognize that and have been working very hard to understand their ways of thinking about that, in order to make sure we're addressing them in the work as we go forward.
It's very important that they can see this—that they can see themselves in the work we do, and that it's not just the NWMO's project. We implement this in partnership with the communities we work with, whether that's Saugeen Ojibway Nation or the Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation in the north. With either one, we want to be in partnership and have that input from the first nation, because we think we're better off having received that information.