Environment committee  No, not at all. I'm just saying that they haven't heard the side of what the oil and gas sector provides.

Environment committee  Why do I think that is? Well again, there's a lot of messaging that isn't clear, and it isn't given properly in information. Right now we have teachers telling us that the oil sands are bad when actually the revenue it provides and the jobs that it provides are still a good thi

Environment committee  If a first nations invested as an owner of, for example, the Coastal GasLink, that's revenue that isn't governed under the communist system of the Indian Act. That's the positive it brings. We're so far behind in this. We're not included in these discussions. You only include t

Environment committee  You mentioned a bit of our history and what has been utilized in the past. As time has evolved, so has technology. When I see fishermen in Musqueam coming in to shore, they're not paddling. They're using two big, heavy, high-powered boats. That's for efficiency. Some of our peopl

Environment committee  We're definitely trying to move forward. Of course, the objective is to eliminate poverty. Canada is blessed with natural resources. No one in Canada should not have access to clean water and better housing, with the social problems that come with being poor. With the natural res

Environment committee  You know, on the orphan well program, we were given $113 million in Alberta to clean up the first nations land. We have changed over 1,600 wells, pipelines and facilities. Our start date was eight months after everyone else. We are the shining star of this program. We've asked fo

Environment committee  Thank you, Chair and committee members, for the opportunity to speak today. My name is Stephen Buffalo and I'm the president and CEO of the Indian Resource Council of Canada. Our organization represents over 130 first nations that have direct interest in the oil and gas industr

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Of course, it's really up to the community to decide. We do not have any influence either way. At the end of the day, we want to present the opportunities themselves. We don't try to force any community to get into something they do not want to get into. The current state we're

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you for the question. I truly appreciate this discussion on UNDRIP. There are a lot of articles, such as article 3 and article 4, on communities determining their own rights and political will in terms of moving to sustain their culture and their heritage. We obviously supp

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  They're pushing hard for the advocacy to continue, obviously, and for having our place. As Chief Robert mentioned.... We have a special operating agency, Indian Oil and Gas Canada, and they don't work for us without regulation. The land is important to us. But, by all means, if w

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you, MP Vidal. I appreciate the question. In the territory I am from, Treaty 6 Samson Cree Nation, at Pigeon Lake we had a world-class oil field, the Bonnie Glen field. In that area, exploration started probably in the late sixties. Obviously, our community boundaries aren

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you, Chair and committee members, for the opportunity to speak today. My name is Stephen Buffalo and I'm the president and CEO of the Indian Resource Council of Canada. Our organization represents over 130 first nations that produce or have a direct interest in the oil and

Natural Resources committee  Can I add to that, Chair?

Natural Resources committee  One thing that Chief Fox has never mentioned that is very successful is taking their moneys from the Indian trust, the Indian moneys pool, and created their own revenue heritage trust, as well as the Samson Cree Nation and the Ermineskin Cree Nation. That's very innovative, becau

Natural Resources committee  Hi, everyone. Thanks for today. The Indian Resource Council came about because of the need for advocacy, the need for our people to understand the industry and to build that capacity to where we are today. Obviously, through time, our people have learned to be active participant