Alberta accused of just going through the motions on consultation

The province of Alberta, through its Sustainable Resource department, released a draft plan on April 5 that will guide development in the Lower Athabasca region of northern Alberta.

First Nations and environmental organizations say, however, that despite their best efforts to provide input into the plan, their voices have gone unheard.

Melody Lepine, director of government and industry relations with the Mikisew Cree First Nation, said her northern band is concerned about the lack of protection for woodland caribou found in the Lower Athabasca Regional draft plan (LARP).

She said First Nations recommended that 40 per cent of the region be classified as protected area. The draft plan has designated only 16 per cent as protected.

“The failure to ensure protections for caribou under the LARP is likely the final nail in the coffin for caribou in northeastern Alberta,” said Melissa Gorrie, lawyer with Ecojustice. This organization represents the Alberta Wilderness Association and Pembina Institute in a federal case about woodland caribou protection, expected to reach court this summer.

Late last year, the environmental groups joined the First Nations of Athabasca Chipewyan, Beaver Lake Cree, and Enoch Cree in litigation, asking the court to force Environment Minister Jim Prentice to prepare a recovery strategy for woodland caribou. They also recommended that cabinet make an emergency order to protect woodland caribou in northeastern Alberta under the Species at Risk Act.

Protection of endangered species falls under federal legislation, but Alberta Sustainable Resource Development’s draft plan has done nothing to pick up the federal slack.

Chief Allan Adam of the Athabasca Chipewyan Nation said the LARP provides little protection for caribou in the region.

“With the influx of people coming in (to the area), there’s no access management plan. People are going in to do whatever they want to do. That’s how we view it right now,” Adam said.

Both Adam and Lepine said they provided extensive material to the provincial government in drafting LARP, as well as participated in the land-use framework and regional advisory council meetings.

“We thought we were doing a pretty good job in providing them with information, what it was we were asking for,” said Lepine. “The consultation process for them was just going through the motions. It wasn’t really meaningful in terms of incorporating any substantial input from us.”

First Nations representatives believe instead that LARP is focused on development and will help industry.

According to the draft plan, the government will honor existing petroleum and natural gas leases in the newly declared protected areas, but industrial development activities such as surface mining for oilsands and minerals will not be allowed.

About 25 energy and mineral companies will be compensated for the amount spent on leases in those areas, as well as for money spent on work done on the lease.

Adam said treaty rights that First Nations continue to gain will mean little with the development plan as it is now.

“The land-use plan has been watered down to cater to industry. If it keeps going in that direction, there will be no where to exercise our treaty rights,” said Adam.

Athabasca Chipewyan is contemplating legal action against the provincial government.

“Enough is enough,” said Adam. “It’s time to launch a case on this. We’re working on that already.”

Lepine said the Mikisew Cree are not opposed to taking legal action, but right now the First Nation will remain focused on the second round of LARP consultations.
“First Nations don’t have a lot of capacity or a lot of resources. We put a lot of what little we had into (the regional plan). This was really important to us. We explained that, made the government aware of how important it was to us, and we just feel really let down,” said Lepine, who admitted she holds little hope that First Nations will be heard at the work on the draft goes forward.

Albertans have 60 days from April 5 to respond to the draft plan.