Evidence of meeting #141 for Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was community.

A recording is available from Parliament.

On the agenda

MPs speaking

Also speaking

Tammie Tuccaro  Councillor, Mikisew Cree First Nation
Kendrick Cardinal  President, Board of Directors, Fort Chipewyan Métis Nation
Allan Adam  Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation
Mandy Olsgard  Senior Toxicologist, As an Individual

The Chair Liberal Peter Schiefke

I call this meeting to order.

Welcome to meeting number 141 of the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities.

We will begin by acknowledging that we are gathered on the ancestral and unceded territories of the Algonquin and Anishinabe peoples. I want to express gratitude that we're able to do the important work of this committee on lands that they've stewarded since time immemorial.

Before we get into the meeting, I'd like to remind all in-person participants to read the best practices guidelines on the cards on the table. These measures are in place to protect the health and safety of all participants.

Today's meeting is taking place in a hybrid format.

Pursuant to Standing Order 108(2) and the motion adopted by the committee on Thursday, November 21, 2024, the committee is commencing its study of environmental contamination in the vicinity of the dock of Fort Chipewyan.

All witnesses have completed the required connection tests in advance of the meeting.

Colleagues, I'd now like to welcome our witnesses today.

From the Mikisew Cree First Nation, we have Tammie Tuccaro, councillor, and Lawrence Courtoreille, chief operating officer. Welcome to you both.

From the Fort Chipewyan Métis Nation, we have Kendrick Cardinal, president of the board of directors. Welcome to you, sir.

From the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation, we have Chief Allan Adam. Welcome to you, sir.

Finally, as an individual, we have Mandy Olsgard, senior toxicologist, who is joining us by video conference. Welcome to you as well.

We'll begin with our opening remarks, for which everyone will have five minutes. For that, we will turn the floor over to Councillor Tammie Tuccaro .

The floor is yours.

Tammie Tuccaro Councillor, Mikisew Cree First Nation

Thank you, honourable Chair and distinguished members of the committee, for this opportunity to speak today.

Tansi, and good day. My name is Tammie Tuccaro, councillor for the Mikisew Cree First Nation, from Treaty No. 8 territory. I come here representing the voices of our community, many of whom have been impacted by an environmental disaster that wasn't made known for decades. Specifically, I want to address the contamination at the “big dock” in Fort Chipewyan, an issue that was left unchecked by the federal Crown and contributes to the environmental, health and mental health impacts that continue to affect our people, our children, our grandchildren and our way of life.

To start off, I'd like to read a quote from one of our land users:

Why was the community never notified, when all along the government knew about this contamination? This is the water we drink, swim and play in. This dock provides connection to my way of life for survival. Once again, the government failed our First Nation.

For years we were denied critical information about the contamination near the big dock from multiple sources, including a major diesel spill that occurred on Transport Canada property in the 1990s. This was a spill the federal Crown never reported to us nor cleaned up. The question that keeps on coming back up is this: Why did the federal Crown not consult with us on this matter?

Instead of notifying us of the spill and remediating this site, we were left in the dark, which unnecessarily exposed us and our children to a federally classified contaminated site, which we actively used. Our community has elevated rates of rare cancers. This situation undermines our efforts and responsibility to protect our people and evidences a complete disregard by the federal Crown of the health and safety of our community.

The 2017 report that is referred to, commissioned by Transport Canada, confirms the presence of nickel, arsenic and hydrocarbons in the groundwater, soil and sediment around the big dock, including on the big dock itself, and the levels that our people are exposed to exceed safety guidelines. The site is not only a commercial site, as mentioned in reports; it is used recreationally by our children and grandchildren for swimming, fishing and boat launching. They are all being directly exposed to cancer-causing toxins. As I said, we are exposed to many rare cancers in our community, a very small community.

On August 24, we sent a joint letter to the Minister of Transport that requested action to address the situation. This letter went unanswered for two months. This is unacceptable. Not getting answers has created a great deal of panic for our community and caused mental health impacts. The lack of responsiveness is a major setback in our path towards reconciliation as outlined in the TRC.

When we finally did receive a response, there was some promise of action, but it's clear that much more needs to be done. The federal Crown must address not just the environmental hazards but the mental health impacts the situation has caused. The fear, anger, anguish and frustration—all these things—that our community feels are evident, and those emotions are compounded by years of neglect over and over.

On November 1, Transport Canada shared with us eight additional studies on the site, but we have not been provided any type of funding capacity to review these documents. They are 300-page reports. We can't read those. This leaves us again in the dark. How can we make informed decisions about the health and safety of our community when we have been denied the opportunity to review this vital information?

To do our due diligence and as a precautionary measure, we notified members of our community not to swim or fish near the big dock until we have the peace of mind that this area is safe for use. Without context and because TC didn't accept our invitation to come to the community, the posting of these signs has been very alarming to our members. People have used this site regularly for recreational purposes for over 30-plus years, so we are continuously being exposed.

What upsets us even more about this case is that Transport Canada was in talks with our community to transfer ownership of the big dock to our respective nations knowing full well that this site was contaminated. They just wanted to hand this off to us to deal with. This move is seen as an attempt to transfer liability of the site, and it feels like the federal Crown was trying to wash their hands of their responsibilities and off-load the burden onto us.

I'm here today to demand that the work to correct this gets done and on our terms. We need funding for physical and mental health supports, and we need a full, independent, environmental and human health risk assessment completed by the specialists we select. This work is critical to understanding the full extent of the situation and to inform proper remediation efforts. Finally, we need a new dock in the next four months before spring comes and the start of the fire season.

Time is of the essence to address not just the environmental and health concerns, but also the mental health impacts that have resulted from this. This approach must acknowledge the environmental racism our community is continuously affronted with. The work will require dedicated resources, financing and streamlined regulatory processes. We expect all that will be provided to us.

We are not just asking for justice; we are demanding it. Our people have lived with this for far too long. It is time for the federal Crown to take responsibility, do the right things, right the wrongs and ensure that this never happens again. We will not stay silent on this matter.

Thank you.

The Chair Liberal Peter Schiefke

Thank you very much for your opening remarks, Councillor Tuccaro.

Next I'll turn the floor over to President Cardinal.

The floor is yours, sir. You have five minutes for your opening remarks.

Kendrick Cardinal President, Board of Directors, Fort Chipewyan Métis Nation

[Witness spoke in indigenous language]

[English]

Good day, honourable Chair and members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to speak today.

My name is Kendrick Cardinal, and I'm the president of the Fort Chipewyan Métis Nation. I'm here today to share the heavy-hearted impacts the contamination of the big dock in Fort Chipewyan has had on our community environmentally, physically and emotionally. The federal government's failure to meaningfully consult with the community of Fort Chipewyan on this issue over the years has made it even worse. I want to take the opportunity to explain the scope of the harm we've experienced.

The big dock has always been an essential part of our lives in Fort Chipewyan. It's a vital place for us to launch our boats as we head onto the land during the open water season and practise our inherent rights, and it serves as our primary means of escape in emergencies like wildfires. We rely on the water in so many ways, and the thought that we cannot trust the safety of the dock or the surrounding environment is devastating to us.

This issue began with the diesel spill back in 1990 and the subsequent contaminated site designation in 2014 and associated site assessments.

In the letter received this morning from Transport Canada, I was informed that the Fort Chipewyan Métis Nation community was provided technical reports. However, my team has absolutely no proof of these reports. This is extremely concerning given the substantial input the Fort Chipewyan Métis Nation, along with other regional and indigenous communities, provided to Honourable Marc Garneau, the former minister of transport, in 2016 and 2017, during consultation on the creation of the Canadian Navigable Waters Act. In particular, we stated that when the protection of most waters used by rights holders for navigation to carry out their constitutionally protected rights is excluded, it's not only discriminatory, in our view, but contrary to the constitutional requirements of reconciliation.

We requested further engagement with the Ministry of Transport to further discuss our concerns, including those related to having our navigation on and relationship with waterways recognized, respected and protected. That engagement did not occur, and it is clear from recent events that a better, more meaningful relationship and consultation are needed.

In 2023, we learned just how unprepared we were. During the height of a major wildfire in Fort Chipewyan that threatened our community, many of our members were devastated and turned to the big dock as a way to evacuate. Some chose to leave by water, if they were able to pull their boats through the mud and into the water, and headed through their traplines, where they felt they would be safe. However, the water levels were so low that the dock could not be used effectively. This was a dangerous situation, and it could have been avoided had the dock been properly maintained and had the reports come back from the federal government to our community.

This year, our neighbouring nation, the ACFN, reached out to Transport Canada to ask for support, requesting that the dock be dredged so that our community could evacuate safely in the future, yet despite all our requests, no action was taken. This only added to our growing frustration and concern. If the waters become too low, our traditional harvesting areas will be in danger, and the Fort Chipewyan Métis have been found to have the highest wild food diets.

Beyond environmental risk, the biggest toll has been on our mental and physical health. For years, we've lived with the uncertainty of not knowing the full extent of contamination and what it means for our health. Our community already has a higher-than-average rate of rare cancers, and the presence of toxic substances in our environment only adds to that fear. Last year, the situation got even worse. The largest seepage in history from the oil sands added more stress and uncertainty to an already difficult situation.

It's difficult to put into words the kind of stress that comes from living in this constant fear. We are constantly asking ourselves questions. Is it safe to fish here? Is it safe to swim here? Can we drink the water? We should never have to live with this level of uncertainty.

The contamination at the big dock was kept from us for decades. When we finally learned about it, we felt betrayed. We had no idea that such a serious issue was sitting right in the heart of our community.

One issue I want to emphasize today is the trauma that has been caused by all of this, the emotional and mental toll it has taken on our people, mostly our youths and elders. The stress of living in this uncertainty is compounded by the fear that our health and the health of the children are at risk.

We need support to help cope with these mental health challenges. This is not just an environmental crisis. It is a public health crisis as well, and it is one that requires mental health support from an indigenous perspective to address the trauma and fear we've been carrying for so long.

In closing, since Minister Anand took over the transport ministry, she has reached out to our communities, and we appreciate that. We recognize her willingness to work with us. Our hope is that this collaboration continues in a way that leads to real, tangible results, but we are asking for more than just communication. We need action. Our community deserves to live in safety, and it is the government's responsibility to ensure that happens.

The contamination at the big dock cannot be ignored any longer. It's time for the government to take full responsibility, remediate the site and ensure we are protected from further harm.

Fort Chipewyan has been heavily impacted by the Holy Angels residential school, and this is another clear indication of how the federal government has not followed through on reconciliation. The voices of the community of Fort Chipewyan need your immediate attention, please and thank you.

Hai hai. Kinanâskomitin. Have a good day.

The Chair Liberal Peter Schiefke

Thank you very much, President Cardinal, for your opening remarks.

I'll now turn the floor over to Chief Adam.

Chief Adam, the floor is yours, sir.

Chief Allan Adam Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

As a land acknowledgement for the Algonquin, Ojibwa, Mohawk and Cree, we come to your territory.

My name is Chief Allan Adam, and I'm from the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation. I want to say thank you to Tammie, Lawrence and President Cardinal for coming with us to make our submission here today.

One thing we look at in our community and talk about is climate change as an issue, not knowing that it would turn into a man-made disaster when you look at it from a holistic approach. This is in relation to the community's safe evacuation from a fire that happened in 2022.

We entered a similar situation in 2023, when not only were we up against fires around the community, but there was a low-water drought, which caused significant damage to the community's boat access. We were trying to fix the problem by asking Transport Canada if it could dredge so we could have safe passage if we needed to evacuate for an emergency situation. Transport Canada came back and said that, no, they could not do anything. We went on and said that we needed to get this done and that we were going to do it without Transport Canada's advice.

We learned that if we were to use any kind of machinery to dredge the water out whatsoever, I, as the chief of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation, would be put in jail. That is the only solution that Transport Canada sent us—a letter stating that I would be incarcerated and that charges would be laid against me. We have the email that was sent to us.

This is coming from the bureaucratic system. This is when we said we were going to make changes and then go through the system. When we went through the system, we hired a contractor, and the contractor found contaminants based on the research done through Transport Canada, dating back all the way to 1997. How many governments have been in power since 1997? Don't look at the fact that the current government—the Trudeau government—is under the Liberal banner. Both the Conservatives and Liberals have had power since then, based on my recollection.

I'm not here to point fingers at anybody and say that you've done something wrong. I'm here to tell you to come fix the problem that has arisen in our community. Maybe the community wouldn't speak about the cancer issues that are causing people to die constantly in our community from the environmental effects. I've always said that one day our community will be environmental refugees. Thanks to Canada and Transport Canada—alongside your baby sister, the Government of Alberta—we are heading down the path toward being environmental refugees. We cannot drink contaminated water.

Every year, we used to see community members go down to the beach and celebrate with the kids on Canada Day. They celebrated what Canada had to offer us, not knowing the disaster that was laid out before us. We watched our kids and adults all swimming there, having fun. Next year, in 2025, knowing that this is all out in the open, you're not going to see one kid in the water, but this has been going on.

We can't continue to go down this path when you say that we are one of the G7 countries of the world. The water contamination in the community of Fort Chip is at a third world level when it comes to contaminants. It's done by industrial movement components upstream from us.

The spills that happened in the eighties, nineties and recently—at the Imperial site—are starting to accumulate. Nothing will be left unturned. These things have to be fixed. If not, we will continue to embarrass you all. You are the ruling government of this country named Canada. Whether you are Conservative, Liberal, NDP, Green or Bloc, you're all part of the whole situation. Nobody is covered under the Crown. This is your mess. You need to clean it up.

I can't stand there and tell our young kids not to go swimming anymore in our beautiful lake. For years, I swam in the lake down by the big dock, down by the forestry dock. I played on the beaches as a kid. In 1997, I was probably 31 years old. I still swam in those areas with my kids. When is this going to become a major issue for the country of Canada to address? Our community has been speaking about environmental issues and health concerns since 1992. Our people are contracting rare diseases—rare cancers. Autoimmune disease is high in the community. Skin rashes are high and unaccounted for. We can't even find the right medication for the skin rashes kids develop today. What's that from? Is it from contaminated water, which continues to be in the public eye? We need to address this issue and we need to address it immediately—no more pointing fingers at anybody whatsoever.

If it's going to cost $25 million to remediate the big dock, fix it up. Then we will take ownership of the big dock, as Transport Canada wants us to. They've been lobbying me since 2013. In 2013, it was the Harper government in power. They asked us to take over the liability of the big dock knowing full well about all the contamination there. I am glad that we as a community decided not to take ownership of it, because look at the mess we would have taken on. We would have signed off on Canada relinquishing its part—all of your fiduciary duties and responsibilities—to the community of Fort Chip. You are the elected members of Parliament who are supposed to correct wrongdoing on environmental issues.

Do not be mistaken. The Peace River and the Athabasca River, along with Lake Athabasca itself, are listed as among the seven major rivers running through Canada. The Athabasca River runs through Fort Chip and continues down to the Peace River. Just because it's a lake doesn't mean it's not part of a river. The current still goes right through our community. We take our water from it and everything.

We have a lot of concerns in the community. Our people are stressed out. I got phone calls from people this past summer asking me, “Chief, is it safe to go swimming?” Do you know what I told them for the first time? “Don't go swimming in that lake. Stay away from there until we fix it up.” Now I'm asking you to fix it up. Do not let this embarrassment continue. How you guys treat first nations communities up north is a black eye for Canada. Even now, the biggest industrial movement is happening 200 kilometres upstream from us. We're affected downstream by everything that comes there.

We're not saying we're not part of the cause of the problem. We're saying we're going to help fix the problem once and for all, but we need your assistance. If not, we will do it ourselves. If Transport Canada wants to put me in jail, by all means it can go ahead and do so.

The Chair Liberal Peter Schiefke

Thank you very much for your opening remarks, Chief Adam.

I'll now turn the floor over to Ms. Olsgard.

Ms. Olsgard, the floor is yours. You have five minutes for your opening remarks.

Mandy Olsgard Senior Toxicologist, As an Individual

Good afternoon and thank you, Chair and committee members, for the opportunity to provide testimony as it relates to the federal contaminated site in Fort Chipewyan. I'm testifying today from the traditional and ancestral lands of first nations and Métis people now referred to as Treaty 6.

As a toxicologist and professional biologist practising in Alberta, I provide technical expertise on health risks and toxicity-related issues to each of the three nations testifying here today. Prior to this, I was a senior toxicologist at the Alberta Energy Regulator, but I began my career as a consultant focusing on environmental site and health risk assessments at contaminated sites.

When ACFN became aware of the designation of the Transport Canada wharf commonly referred to as the big dock, as it was a federal contaminated site, they requested technical support in understanding what exactly that meant and if there could be health risks to community members from the traditional activities shared by ACFN, Fort Chip Métis and MCFN, who are here today. To support this request, I focused my review on the 2017 human health preliminary quantitative risk assessment and ecological risk assessment, which I'll refer to as the risk assessment, by Millennium EMS Solutions, which relied on the phase 3 environmental site assessment conducted by EGE Engineering Services. These studies referenced the previous studies since 1997, but those were not available to me and I have not reviewed them.

Briefly, there were six different areas of potential concern with identified contamination of soil, sediment and groundwater at the big dock. This is not uncommon at docks across Canada, but what is uncommon is that there was a lack of notification in 2014 when the TC wharf was classified as a class 2 contaminated site under the national classification system for contaminated sites. This designation suggests that action is likely required, because those sites have a high potential for adverse off-site impacts. The lack of notification by Transport Canada to the three nations appears to be a failure of successive federal governments as to step 3 of the federal contaminated sites action plan, which directs notification and engagement of nearby stakeholders.

The sources of contamination were due to activities such as fuelling barges, fuel storage, construction materials and spills over the years. Contamination was identified and not fully delineated, a deficiency of the 2017 phase 3 ESA, for several classes of chemicals, including metals, volatile organic hydrocarbons, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and petroleum hydrocarbons. From a toxicological perspective, several health effects can be experienced from exposure to these chemicals, including but not limited to cancers of the digestive tract and blood and lymphatic systems, non-carcinogenic effects on the neurological system and kidneys, and skin rashes.

In the interest of time, I would like to first speak to why I could not answer the question posed to me by the three nations. The main technical inaccuracy identified in my review of the risk assessment conducted by the third party consultants, which would have limited its usefulness in managing health risks and determining remedial objectives—the stated intent—is that the consultant incorrectly classified the site as commercial use, effectively limiting the assessment of human exposure. That is inaccurate given the reliance of community members on the big dock for their traditional way of life.

From table D in the speaking notes provided, it is evident that the majority of human health exposure pathways were determined by the consultant to be inoperable, and, as such, they were excluded from the risk assessment. This means the risk assessment did not assess or provide results for potential risks from the ingestion of traditional foods and medicines. This is in a northern community with a 91% indigenous population and well-documented reliance on the land and water for traditional diets. It did not assess the potential risks from contact with contaminated soils or contact with contaminated sediments or the surface water. This finding is inconsistent with recent communications from the Minister of Transport's office and a letter received by ACFN, which states that the studies previously undertaken at the site have not identified any risks to human health or the environment, and the department has no indication that these circumstances have changed.

As I have shown here, human health exposure pathways specific to the three nations in Fort Chipewyan were not assessed, and the full extent of potential risks to community members from exposure to contamination at the TC wharf through ingestion of foods and medicines and exposure to contaminated media is unknown. Notably—and this is not reflected in recent Transport Canada communications—the risk assessment did predict potential risks to human health if groundwater was consumed. This is important, as the risk assessment predicted that exposure to benzene, 2-methylnaphthalene and PHC F2 concentrations in groundwater could pose potential risks if people were consuming it. The risk assessment recommended follow-up studies to document the use of domestic water wells that were identified in the area. There's no evidence that these were followed through on by the government.

This is more concerning and is evidence of poor professional practice by the consultant when the potential effect of benzene exposure to cause cancers of the blood and bone systems are considered along with the most recent reporting of cancer incidents by the Alberta government in the community of Fort Chipewyan. This notably has not been updated for over a decade.

As shown in figure 2 in the speaking notes, the consultant did not establish the baseline community health condition or consider the higher-than-expected cancer rates in Fort Chipewyan, which have been documented and reported by the Alberta government since 2009. There are a higher number of observed cases of biliary tract cancers, cancers of the blood and lymphatic system, lung cancer, and all types of cancers, as reconfirmed in 2014.

Am I out of time?

The Chair Liberal Peter Schiefke

You are, Ms. Olsgard. I didn't want to cut you off, because you were sharing important information.

4:40 p.m.

Senior Toxicologist, As an Individual

Mandy Olsgard

I have just one more paragraph.

The Chair Liberal Peter Schiefke

By all means, go ahead and finish. I think we should get your opening remarks on record.

4:40 p.m.

Senior Toxicologist, As an Individual

Mandy Olsgard

Another important finding was that surface water samples were not collected in the phase 3 ESA or relied on in the risk assessment. This should have stopped a risk assessment from being conducted. No data for chemicals and surface water was considered.

Supplemental monitoring data collected by ACFN and MCFN in 2024 through their community-based monitoring programs provided surface water and sediment quality data that confirmed metal and PAH contamination persists today. Unfortunately, due to the deficiencies and errors of the health risk assessment contracted by the federal government, the source of contamination in surface water and sediments at the TC wharf has not been fully identified or delineated. Contaminated soils, groundwater and sediment have not been remediated. The potential risks to community members' health are still unknown.

Thank you.

The Chair Liberal Peter Schiefke

Thank you very much for your opening remarks, Ms. Olsgard.

We will begin our line of questioning today with Mrs. Goodridge.

Mrs. Goodridge, the floor is yours. You have six minutes.

4:40 p.m.

Conservative

Laila Goodridge Conservative Fort McMurray—Cold Lake, AB

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I want to start off by thanking our witnesses for being here. It's always lovely to see some more faces from northern Alberta in Ottawa.

I'm going to jump right into this.

President Cardinal, you said in your statement that you denied receiving the letter that Minister Anand said that your organization, Fort Chipewyan Métis Nation, supposedly received. Are you saying she's not telling the truth?

4:40 p.m.

President, Board of Directors, Fort Chipewyan Métis Nation

Kendrick Cardinal

What letter in particular—the one from this morning?

4:40 p.m.

Conservative

Laila Goodridge Conservative Fort McMurray—Cold Lake, AB

Yes.

4:40 p.m.

President, Board of Directors, Fort Chipewyan Métis Nation

Kendrick Cardinal

We received that one. I was referring to the 20 reports from 2014 to 2017. We haven't received any substantial documents that prove the communications from the federal ministers on transport.

4:40 p.m.

Conservative

Laila Goodridge Conservative Fort McMurray—Cold Lake, AB

As far as you're concerned or aware, you didn't receive any notification of this contamination.

4:45 p.m.

President, Board of Directors, Fort Chipewyan Métis Nation

Kendrick Cardinal

None whatsoever. If there are any supporting documents, I'd like those sent to the three nations in the community of Fort Chipewyan...that the communication was proceeded with.

4:45 p.m.

Conservative

Laila Goodridge Conservative Fort McMurray—Cold Lake, AB

Councillor Tuccaro, has Mikisew been able to do an assessment similar to what Fort Chip Métis did?

4:45 p.m.

Councillor, Mikisew Cree First Nation

Tammie Tuccaro

We've been trying. Seeing that we only received this letter at basically the eleventh hour, we've been trying to utilize our resources to do background checks. In what we've been able to do in the last couple of hours, it's not evident that we received anything whatsoever.

4:45 p.m.

Conservative

Laila Goodridge Conservative Fort McMurray—Cold Lake, AB

I hate to assume things, but if communication was shared with Mikisew stating that there was contamination, I assume this wouldn't just somehow go in a desk drawer.

4:45 p.m.

Councillor, Mikisew Cree First Nation

Tammie Tuccaro

It's something we wouldn't take lightly, that's for sure. The letter points out that it was only shared with the Métis and the Mikisew Cree. We definitely would have shared that information with ACFN and the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo considering that the RMWB is where the TC wharf is. The letter is unclear for us and is creating confusion between all of us. That's what we want to get to the bottom of also. As President Cardinal says, we would like to see these letters so we can go back and see where things were missed or what happened.

During that same time frame, our nations were in the midst of working on the agricultural “cows and plows” benefits. We were heavily focused on that. To see something that's classified as contamination raises red flags. It's something that definitely would have been dealt with right then and there. It's not something we would have let go this long.

4:45 p.m.

Conservative

Laila Goodridge Conservative Fort McMurray—Cold Lake, AB

I appreciate that.

I remarked that the wharf is on the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo land, and they weren't consulted. They aren't even mentioned in the letter.

4:45 p.m.

Councillor, Mikisew Cree First Nation

Tammie Tuccaro

They're not mentioned in the letter, but they are cc'd. That is also something we questioned.