Treaty 3 agreement with nuclear waste management group criticized by some leaders, elders

An agreement signed between Grand Council Treaty #3 (GCT#3) and the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) has raised the ire of some First Nation leaders and elders in the territory.

Treaty #3 passed a resolution last Wednesday at its chiefs assembly in Lac Seul First Nation to renew what it describes as an ongoing relationship with the organization – which is working to develop a deep geological repository for used nuclear fuel from nuclear power plants.

But the chief of Ojibways of Onigamiing First Nation, Jeff Copenace, criticized the agreement and accused the organization of not being transparent in how it was brought forward.

The text of the agreement wasn’t even circulated at the meeting until a chief requested it, Copenace said.

“There’s over a million dollars – $1.1 million, maybe almost $1.2 million – dedicated specifically for lawyers and legal fees, for nuclear sector experts and consultants,” he said of the agreement.

“But there’s only a couple hundred thousand dollars dedicated to engaging community members whose, again – these are the rights that they’re trampling on. It’s their treaty rights. It’s not the chiefs’.”

Copenace has worked in both government and the natural resource sector in the past, and he knows how industry proponents operate, he said.

“The fact that this agreement focuses on the long-term management of used nuclear fuel in Canada during an adaptive phased management site selection process is enough to have concern,” he added.

Contacted for a response on Friday, Treaty #3 Territorial Planning Unit director Lucas King said the organization’s office was closed for the day and referred CBC to its news release issued Thursday.

The release states that the agreement “does not consent or imply any consent to NWMO’s Adaptive Phased Management (APM) project or its site selection process.”

“The Chiefs in Assembly continue to support the Elders Declaration of 2011, opposing the storage of nuclear waste in Treaty #3,” it said.

The agreement also does not constitute consultation on the nuclear waste storage project, it said.

“Our staff at Grand Council and our legal advice spent months ensuring this agreement in no way limited our options in regard to our relationship with the Nuclear Waste Management Organization,” said Ogichidaa Francis Kavanaugh in the statement.

But a former grand chief of the Anishinaabe Nation in Treaty #3 dismissed the idea that First Nations could take money from a project proponent and continue to oppose the project.

“That’s not the way it works,” said Leon Jourdain, who is also a former chief of Lac La Croix First Nation.

“By us, the chiefs, accepting the money, the Nuclear Waste [Management Organization] have got their foot in the door now. And they’re going to buy their way in.”

Elder Alo White from Naotkamegwanning First Nation, who is involved with the group We the Nuclear Free North, echoed Jourdain’s concerns.

“The bottom line is they are being bought off,” he said. “The First Nations chiefs are being bought off. Money speaks very powerful words.”

However, Vince Ponka, the regional communications manager for northern Ontario with the Nuclear Waste Management Organization, insisted that the money is not being given in an effort to buy consent for its project.

Instead, he said, it’s about making sure First Nations aren’t out of pocket for the costs of educating themselves about it, he said.

“We feel it’s our duty to talk to people and to consult people, especially First Nations in the area, just to make sure that they have an understanding of the project, just so they have that ‘informed’ part,” Ponka said.

“If after learning the details of our project, they still feel it’s not a good fit, that’s just fine,” he said.

Treaty #3 passed a resolution in 2011 mandating the relationship between itself and the Nuclear Waste Management Organization, the organization explained in the Oct. 6 statement. That relationship has been renewed on several occasions.

“I had absolutely no idea that there was any kind of discussion happening between our nation and the [NWMO],” Jourdain said.

“The first time I heard of this was yesterday, I believe. I could not believe it.”

There should never have been any discussion of money changing hands, he said.

Instead, any involvement with the nuclear organization should’ve been discussed with the people.

“I’ve been in politics for many years, and that is a typical approach by the government and by industry corporations,” he said of the nuclear organization’s deal.

“We will give you seed money so that you can consult with your people. And at the end of the … day, the story is the same, which is that they benefit from whatever product that they want to put in our traditional territory.”