Ontario should take its cue from Quebec to develop the North, MPs told

Quebec was forced to take the lead on the aboriginal file in the 1970s when its proposed James Bay hydro project ran into considerable opposition from Cree people in the region. The 1975 James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement is one of the earliest modern-day land claims and set out the rules for First Nation benefits under the project.

“It’s evolved and it’s got 35 years of history,” said Hanson. “I think that’s what’s missing in Ontario.”

The agreement laid the groundwork for other land claims in the province, like the 1978 Northeastern Quebec Agreement and the 2008 Nunavik Inuit Land Claims Agreement, which offer political certainty for businesses in nearly all of Quebec’s North.

Quebec’s system is “the best in Canada,” said Kirk McKinnon, president and CEO of MacDonald Mines Exploration Ltd. “If you believe the Ring of Fire and the James Bay lowlands offer the opportunity I’m outlining for you, then it requires government leadership in order to bring order, stability and direction.”

MacDonald, a small exploration company, is partnered with Hudbay, a much larger firm with operations in North and South America. However, Hudbay is reluctant to invest for fear of political wrangling, McKinnon said. “Companies do not like uncertainty. They are spending over one billion dollars in Peru, but they’re reluctant to spend it in Canada.”

Ontario’s northern First Nations are governed by older agreements like Treaty 9, signed in 1905. However, many First Nations feel the obligations of these treaties are not enough to cover the impact of modern mining and they often demand individual agreements with mining companies at the earliest stages of exploration.

MacDonald Mines has successfully negotiated agreements with two First Nations but not with others, and the inconsistent demands and desires among different First Nations is the underlying problem for resource companies, said McKinnon.

The committee’s witnesses repeatedly referred to a federal court case that could make or break any development in the Ring of Fire, a vast wilderness south of Hudson’s Bay and west of James Bay that is dotted with mining claims.

On Nov. 7, the Matawa First Nations, an umbrella group representing nine smaller nations, filed a suit against the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (CEAA), arguing its aboriginal rights and title to the land were being neglected.

CEAA wants to regulate the biggest proposed mining project in the Ring of Fire, Cliffs Natural Resources’ Big Thor chromite deposit, with a comprehensive review rather than a joint review panel. The former requires written documentation while the latter involves oral hearings, and the Matawa First Nations, whose territory runs over the project, believe the more intensive method should be followed.

The Ring of Fire’s future rests on the shoulders of the Big Thor project, particularly because it requires the construction of a 260-kilometre road that other projects need to make their projects viable.

In northern Quebec, the construction of transportation corridors is happening because of an upswing in political will to develop the North.

The Plan Nord, introduced by Premier Jean Charest last year, is a legacy project to encourage mineral investment, environmental stewardship and aboriginal self-determination northward from the U.S border. The Plan Nord governs the construction of ports, highways, airports and railroads in the North, to encourage the development of mining and energy projects.

Charest claims the 25-year plan will lead to $80 billion in investments and 20,000 jobs a year.

Northern Ontario suffers from a dearth of such critical infrastructure. Two highways run along the north shore of Lake Superior and the CN Transcontinental rail line runs along an East-West corridor a little further north. That leaves the vast majority of Northern Ontario without modes of transportation safe for winter ice roads and airports.

David Kilgour, a city councillor from Sudbury, told the committee a coherent plan to develop the North would help ease the economic and social plight of remote First Nation communities accessible only by air.

“Right now, they’re dragging houses to Attawapiskat and they’ve got what? A six-week window to do it in,” said Kilgour.

Quebec’s proactive approach is even drawing workers from Kilgour’s own family. “My son is going to work in northern Quebec right now,” he said. “He’s going to drive literally thousands of kilometres to get there. But the fact is he can get there.”