It's clear changes at the Federal Level of Government are required and are coming.
Bill C-38 is currently being debated.
"The new provisions give Ottawa greater say in which resource projects would be subject to environmental assessment, sets strict time limits, and bans dual reviews at the federal and provincial levels in favour of a single process.
Resource development is too vital to the Canadian economy to be tied up in unnecessary red tape, government ministers countered.
In a release, the Department of Finance said planned energy and other major resource projects would generate more than $500 billion in new investment over the next decade. The sector already represents about 10 per cent of the country's output, the department said......
Yesterday, the Harper government dispatched 10 of its ministers across the country from St. John's, N.L., to Surrey, B.C., to sell its vision."
This transcript link below is from February 2012 ..and when you read the whole thing ...you pick out stuff like:
http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?DocId=5394810&Language=E&Mode=1&Parl=41&Ses=1http
--Moonias from Marten Falls thinks Eagle's nest, Big Daddy, Black Thor etc is all in his territory. Really? Maybe he should speak to someone over at Webequie to see why they are so angry?
- Wes Hanson mentions IBD negotation can't be initiated with FN until they have a completed feasibility study, determine financing of project etc. (common sense statement)
-When the mining companies are asked: "Are your companies prepared to enter into equity participation agreements with first nations people?" I give a standing ovation to Wes Hanson for stating: "
"in order for the communities to earn an equity ownership position in these mineral companies, they have to start establishing businesses, whether those are hotels, power generation, or running a filtering and drying plant. They have to take advantage of the opportunities that are there for them now, generate cash flow, and invest it in the mining companies.
We work for a publicly traded company. They're more than welcome to buy our shares and become shareholders in our company."
-The following words of Chief Elijah Moonias, Marten Falls are interesting:
" We don't want to end up like those Zimbabweans. They live in mud huts now, and their children are barefoot after Cecil Rhodes took the diamonds out. We definitely don't want that."
Then Joe Daniels speaks up and says to Moonias:"It sounds, in that case, as though you are interested in developing some of these lands to produce these jobs that will actually be effective for your community."
Moonias indicates out of 600 people in Marten Falls, approx. 1/2 live on the reserve.
With thousands of jobs coming ...he is asked if this is something he would look forward to as a chief. He is asked if there has been any development that occurred around or near a native community that had a satisfactory outcome in his view.
It is then mentioned by David Anderson that communities, such as the one in Saskatchewan at the Meadow Lake Tribal Council, have done a very good job of working with local communities and local businesses to develop their resources and their economic activity for their young people. He asks Moonias, " Would you see them as an example of a group you could learn from??"
Moonias replies with:
"Maybe I can best illustrate the answer to your question this way. Just as an analogy, OPG approached us about five years ago. They said they were going to do a study on the Albany River for further development. There's development already at Lake St. Joseph. There's a dam there. The river is diverted west from there into the Wabigoon and English River system into Manitoba to the Winnipeg River.
They said they wanted to come and look at Cat River--that's a site 40 miles down from us--and Hat Island further down, to see if they could develop that potential. We said, “Okay, fine; go there and do your study.”
Then our people began to question us about it. They asked what we were doing and if we were planning to work with these people and put a dam there.
OPG offered us revenue-sharing from the system once it would be in place. Presumably that would bring capital, well-being, nice houses, and stuff like that, maybe even jobs for some people once we were to agree to that.
Then we began to question. Was it worth it to do that, destroy the river some more, stop the sturgeon from swimming? The sturgeon have done that for 300 million years. Do we have the right to do that, to further disturb that, just because we want to be comfortable? Just because we want a job and a nice house, do we have the right to do that? As aboriginal people, can we say we have the right to do that? We have certain principles that we follow with Mother Earth.
That same question applies to the development here.
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You read stuff like that and you can just imagine the frustration. It seems Moonias doesn't want to live in a mud hut ..wants a house and to be comfortable but doesn't want development at the same time. How does he expect to accomplish that?
After reading this transcript and reading the Webequie announcement...you start to get the feeling that there is no such thing as meaningful consultation...with some.
It's "I want everything ...and I want it now and I am not willing to give anything up. If I don't get exactly what I want ..nothing goes forward.
The federal government is viewed as Santa Claus with unlimited giving of toys....as well as the local PUBLICALLY TRADED mining companies.
What needs to be made clear is that the money for toys comes from tax payers.
People that work, struggle to make ends meets and are doing the best they can.
Even as a kid I learned early that I didn't get everything I wanted.
I was told to find a way to earn the money and buy it for myself. I was told to look for opportunity...to have initiative.
Webequie FN need to take initiative. Marten Falls needs to take Initiative along with others.
Wes said it perfectly:" start establishing businesses, whether those are hotels, power generation, or running a filtering and drying plant......."
Moonias,at Marten Falls, needs to face reality in his thinking.
He is not the chief of a happy community. A community happily hunting and living off the land and happily watching sturgeon swimming. There is a very high suicide rate and high alcohol and drug addiction in his community.
Chiefs need to communicate the opportunities coming available and put in measures to clean up the alcohol and drug addiction like some already have.
There are traffickers smuggling OxyContin to fly-in communites and selling an 80mg pill for more than $400 bucks That money can go towards a road or something else that has more purpose. Seems like time for some honest self reflection and some meaningful communication throughout these villages or... be left out.
Wes Hanson mentions:
"That's what's missing in Ontario. Right now, Noront is working individually with communities and negotiating with the individual communities separately, and that's just not efficient. That's probably the least efficient aspect of the whole process...Wes mentions, "
"It's that focus on continuing to go back to the communities, time and time again, even though you've been rejected for meetings, or refused meetings, or meetings have been delayed. You have to just keep going back and exercising some patience..."
I can't figure out how communities can have 90% unemployment, claim to want a better life and yet at the same time...reject meetings, refuse meetings or delay meetings and AT THE SAME TIME COMPLAIN ABOUT LACK OF CONSULTATION.
The Feds needs to come out with a clear set of rules as Kirk McKinnon (MacDonald Mines) indicated. This is not the job of the mining companies. Wes Hanson should not be running around looking for ways to make ALL FN's happy with specifically tailored agreements.
He should be running Noront Resources. The Federal & Provincial Government ..I am sure realizes this and will make the necessary changes to make investment in the resource sector, for Major Companies.. Less frightening in Canada. Our current share price reflects this...lack of clear cut policy from Government. It will change.
Canada will do what is in the best interest of the Country. The resource section of this Bill C-38 is a start. Strict time limits mean...if you cancel or delay.....its going ahead without YOU.