Info
From: Ministre AN - Minister NA (AADNC/AANDC)
August 28 2020
Ms. Kaviq Kaluraq Chairperson Nunavut Impact Review Board P.O. Box 1360 CAMBRIDGE BAY NU X0B 0C0
Dear Ms. Kaluraq:
Thank you for your correspondence of June 9, 2020, regarding the Nunavut Impact Review Board’s reconsideration of terms and conditions of Agnico Eagle Mines Limited’s Project Certificate No. 006 in light of its “Saline Effluent Discharge to Marine Environment, Rankin Inlet, Meliadine Gold Mine” Project Proposal. I apologize for the delay in responding. I also received your August 7, 2020, correspondence providing notice to all parties of the Board’s guidance on the anticipated process for the reconsideration.
Given the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions currently in place, I am aware that completing an assessment of this scale will create some logistical challenges. However, I remain confident in the Board’s ability to work through these challenges and move this process forward in a timely manner while being mindful of the need for all parties to effectively participate.
After reviewing the feedback submitted from regulatory authorities, Inuit and community organizations, community members, and members of the public, I suggest that the Board focus on the following issues during the reconsideration process: - impacts to the Qamanirjuaq caribou herd and impacts to the five communities that live within the herd’s habitat; - impacts to fish and fish habitat in Melvin Bay from increased volume of saline water discharge; and - identifying and updating other terms and conditions not including 43, 44, and 54 to reflect any newly proposed changes.
Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada is pleased to be providing participant funding for the reconsideration of the terms and conditions of Project Certificate No. 006 through the Northern Participant Funding Program. This funding is intended to help Indigenous Peoples and Northerners access the resources and expertise needed to participate effectively in impact assessments of major resource or infrastructure development projects in the North, and is a key tool (along with the Board’s process itself) relied upon by the Crown to ensure its duty to consult is met.
Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this matter. I look forward to receiving the Board’s report following the reconsideration process.
Sincerely,
Hon. Daniel Vandal, P.C., M.P.
1 c.c.: The Honourable Marc Garneau, P.C., M.P. The Honourable Patty Hajdu, P.C., M.P. The Honourable Seamus O’Regan, P.C., M.P. The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, P.C., M.P. The Honourable Bernadette Jordan, P.C., M.P.
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