Tansi Nîtôtemtik,
"We still have issues in the communities about poverty and water and housing," said President of the Indian Resource Counsel Stephen Buffalo about the benefits of Indigenous ownership of the Trans Mountain project.
Image retrieved from: <www.cbc.ca/news/business/tmx-trans-mountain-reconciliation-ownership-stake-1.5350454>.
This week, ReconciliAction YEG has been covering topics in the Trans Mountain Pipeline Project. Today’s topic discusses the question of how Indigenous ownership of a stake in the Trans Mountain Pipeline, which transports oil and other products from Edmonton to the Vancouver area, could contribute to the alleviation of poverty in Indigenous communities.
Three main interest groups are looking to own a stake in the pipeline project: “Project Reconciliation based in Calgary, the Iron Coalition led by chiefs in the Edmonton area, and the Western Indigenous Pipeline Group based out of [British Columbia].”[1] The groups are hoping to take advantage of the opportunity for First Nations across the country to collectively purchase a 51 per cent stake in the Trans Mountain Pipeline.[2] At a Calgary summit held by the National Coalition of Chiefs in November of 2019, the main topic was poverty on reserves and how to tackle the problem.[3] One possible answer is to empower Indigenous communities to increase their financial stake in Canadian energy products.[4]
Delbert Wapass, the founder of Project Reconciliation, says Indigenous ownership in the pipeline would help empower communities to be self-sufficient for generations into the future and that in the past, Indigenous groups have been “economically starved out of any large opportunities.”[5] Wapass comments, “We are always a recipient of – rather than controlling our own destiny. We don’t want to be dependant (sic) on government.”[6] Other Indigenous leaders have said an ownership stake could additionally ensure the environment is protected through Indigenous monitoring of the pipeline.[7] Ownership in the pipeline could contribute to the alleviation of poverty by providing an economic return in the form of wealth generation that can “pave the way for true reconciliation through self-determined generational wealth, poverty elimination and future projects” such as sustainable infrastructure projects.[8] Additionally, ownership stake in the pipeline would allow key decisions to be made by Indigenous communities, such as implementing the program of the First Nations Fisheries Council which would connect First Nations communities to employment opportunities across the marine sector.[9]
Before Indigenous ownership in the pipeline becomes a reality, two main hurdles must be overcome. First, the federal government must take steps to engage Indigenous groups in negotiating ownership. While Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has stated in the past that the government would be open to Indigenous ownership of the pipeline and has discussed assembling a “committee of experts to advise about the possibility of selling a financial stake of the project to First Nations,”[10] it is only recently that they have taken steps in the right direction. On February 10, 2020, Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced the beginning of a new set of consultations with Indigenous groups.[11] The consultations will determine if and how Indigenous groups might take part in the ownership of the Trans Mountain Pipeline and its expansion project.[12] With up to 129 communities to be consulted over the next several weeks, there is a need to ensure they have a chance for meaningful economic participation in the pipeline.[13] The second hurdle is that Indigenous groups must be committed to working together towards a common purpose or else risk the federal government selling the project to someone else.[14] One Indigenous group, the Iron Coalition, has concerns about making a bid on the pipeline too soon and warns that the ownership of the pipeline is “too important to get wrong.”[15] An Indigenous ownership stake in the Trans Mountain Pipeline Project has the potential to be “a significant step along the spectrum from managing poverty to managing wealth” and stands to positively redefine the relationship between Canada and Indigenous communities as it relates to major resource development.[16]
Ultimately, Indigenous ownership in the Trans Mountain Pipeline Project could be an important step towards Reconciliation between Canada and Indigenous Peoples. The return on investment would provide a key source of wealth that would allow Indigenous Peoples to gain autonomy by reducing their reliance on financial support from the government and thereby contributing to the assertion of their inherent rights to self-determination and self-governance. Recent developments in the Trans Mountain Pipeline Project indicate that the coming weeks will prove to be crucial as the federal government proceeds with the promised consultations and the Indigenous interest groups work to unite towards the common goal of ownership in the Trans Mountain Pipeline.
Until next time,
Team ReconciliAction YEG
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[1] Kyle Bakx, “Indigenous groups urged to unite or risk losing out on Trans Mountain pipeline ownership” (07 November 2019), online: CBC News <www.cbc.ca/news/business/tmx-trans-mountain-reconciliation-ownership-stake-1.5350454>.
[2] Jill Croteau, “First Nation chiefs work to defeat on-reserve poverty, pitch pipeline investment at Calgary summit” (04 November 2019), online: Global News <globalnews.ca/news/6126288/first-nation-chiefs-poverty-pipeline-calgary/>.
[3] Ibid.
[4] Ibid.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Ibid.
[7] Delbert Wapass, Wallace Fox & Shane Gottfriedson, “Opinion: Native ownership of Trans Mountain pipeline would replace First Nation poverty with prosperity” (last updated 06 May 2019), online: The Province <theprovince.com/opinion/op-ed/opinion-native-ownership-of-trans-mountain-pipeline-would-replace-first-nation-poverty-with-prosperity>.
[8] Ibid.
[9] Ibid.
[10] Supra note 2.
[11] The Canadian Press, “Trans Mountain pipeline Indigenous ownership talks launched by federal government” (10 February 2020), online: Global News <globalnews.ca/news/6531738/trans-mountain-pipeline-indigenous-ownership-consultations/>.
[12] Ibid.
[13] Ibid.
[14] Supra note 1.
[15] Tony Alexis & Paul Poscente, “The Trans Mountain pipeline – and Indigenous ownership – is too important to get wrong” (25 July 2019), online: The Globe and Mail <www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-the-trans-mountain-pipeline-and-indigenous-ownership-is-too/>.
[16] Ibid.
