Day 2: Different Location, but Same Concerns

We arrived in Sioux Lookout, Ontario, last night to attend the government’s second hearing on the Far North and Mining Modernization Acts (Bills 173 and 191). Today’s hearing followed a spirited debut at Queen’s Park in Toronto last Thursday. Stakeholders in Toronto were quick to stress that the issues of budget, independent oversight, and meaningful partnerships with First Nations were crucial to the success of Bill 191. In Sioux Lookout, Ontario’s “Gateway to the North,” these same issues were again front and centre despite the very different constituency that attended.

Despite a relatively poor turnout (possibly because of the unfortunate scheduling conflicts outlined in our last entry?), the hearing still saw its share of Far North stakeholders presenting to the Standing Committee. Prospectors, for example, were quick to make the predictable point that the Far North Act will scare away investment. Representatives from the Cat Lake and Slate Falls First Nations, however, showed their support for the Act’s impact on industry. Wilfred Wesley from Cat Lake First Nations was quite clear when he said that he doesn’t want his community “to make the same mistakes as in Southern Ontario” where development has proceeded planning. Cat Lake and State Falls, communities already engaged in comprehensive land use planning in Ontario’s Far North, indicated their support for Bill 191 this morning.

But, as Steve Winsor, Project Manager for the Cat Lake/Slate Falls planning initiative, cautioned, the Act needs to ensure that land use plans are the result of real joint decision making between communities and the Province. Although Cat Lake and Slate Falls support the Act, they are uncomfortable that the Act, as it stands, gives the Ministry of Natural Resources the power to trump community plans. They are also concerned about provisions in Bill 191 that would allow development to proceed before land use planning has been completed.

As it was in Toronto, funding was a critical issue at the Sioux Lookout hearing. The local communities engaged in land use planning have provided 80% of the resources for their initiative, and crucial data-collection has been put on hold due to a lack of funds. When asked by Standing Committee member Bill Mauro – the committee’s unofficial champion of the Bill – whether the communities had accessed any of the $30 million that had been set aside in the 2008 budget for land use planning, Wesley and Winsor told the hearing that they had been unable to access this funding. It appears that the $30 million is already entirely accounted for, and had already been earmarked by the time it was announced. This means no new money for communities that want to do land use planning, unless the government makes additional commitments.

Because of the number of major issues raised at the hearings in Toronto and Sioux Falls, Conservative and NDP Standing Committee members have asked for an extension of the committee’s deadline to allow for a careful consideration of possible amendments to the Act. The Liberal-dominated committee, perhaps with a public relations interest in a quick passage of the Act, voted against this proposal, and the amendment deadline remains September 7th. This is clearly frustrating to Opposition members, and to stakeholders who want to see significant amendments to the Bill.

It’s clear that the government is facing increased calls for additional consultation and key changes to Bill 191. Using these hearings as a productive dialogue with communities that actually live in the Far North will be crucial to the success of the initiative. So will addressing the issues of adequate funding and meaningful First Nations leadership in planning for the Far North.

We will be in Thunder Bay tomorrow for the third day of hearings, and will be posting our commentary at day’s end.