aboriginal land resource management forum, january 2015
TRANSCRIPT
15th Aboriginal Land Resources Management Conference
Vancouver, January 28, 2015
Introduction
• no one size fits all for benefit agreements
• dependent on the capacity and vision of each First Nation
• all agreements must address two fundamental issues
• First Nations’ interest in and jurisdiction over their land
Indigenous Interests in the Land
Non-Treaty First Nations:• not just dots on a map
Treaty First Nations:• 'cede, release and surrender'?• contrary to inherent limit on
Aboriginal title• contrary to honour of the Crown
& fiduciary duties
Provincial obligations
• provinces saddled with the all the obligations of the Crown
• treaty obligations, honour of the Crown and fiduciary obligations
Expectation of Consent
• consent does not equal veto
• industry runs serious risk:
• authorizations quashed
• damages awarded
Duty to Consult often not Enough
• duty to consult as a procedural right
• governments will often have to justify infringements
• compelling/substantial objective consistent with fiduciary obligations
• to be compelling/substantial must be considered from both indigenous & non-indigenous perspective and must further reconciliation
Duty to Consult not Enough (continued)
• infringement must be necessary to achieve the objective
• must minimally impair
• benefits to general public can't be outweighed by negative effects on FN
Comprehensive Treaty Processnot the Solution
• Canada's 'new' policy still based on extinguishment
• policy must reflect principles from Tsilhqo'tin and UNDRIP:
•right to decide how lands are developed (or not developed)
• right to benefit
Bilateral Agreements
• advantage of separate agreements with industry and government
• both recognize interest in the land and reflect ongoing decision-making authority
Government-to-Government agreements
• include benefits and decision-making
• strategic planning
• address First Nation structural deficits
• important that they include mechanisms for future decision-making
First Nation-industry agreements
• upstream of provincial processes
• strategic-level, long-term planning, operational planning
• regulatory approvals (pre-application)
• should reflect traditional knowledge, values and decision-making
• consent through consensus
Thank you for your time
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