Review of Environmental and Regulatory Processes 2. Review of the Fisheries Act Submission by the Essipit Innu and Nutashkuan Innu First Nation Concerning the Review of the Fisheries Act Essipit Innu First Nation Nutashkuan Innu First Nation Presented to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans November 30, 2016 Page 1 of 10 Review of Environmental and Regulatory Processes 2. Review of the Fisheries Act Preliminary Note for the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans (FOPO) Because of the deadline for this consultation, Mashteuiatsh First Nation did not have time to present and obtain authorization by resolution for the use of the name Pekuakamiulnuatsh Takuhikan in this brief despite the group’s significant participation in preparing it. If changes must be made once the brief is presented to elected officials, we will inform you and forward the resolution and the new version of the document. 1. Introduction1 1.1. Background The federal government launched a Review of Environmental and Regulatory Processes (hereinafter referred to as the “Review”), one component of which is a review of the Fisheries Act as amended in 2012 and 2013 (Bills C-38 and C-45). The amendments significantly reduced protection for several species of fish and their habitat. The two so- called “mammoth” bills replaced the section preventing “the harmful alteration, disruption or destruction of fish habitat” with measures to prevent “serious harm to fish that are part of a commercial, recreational or Aboriginal fishery, or that support such a fishery”. Further changes were made by amendments to the Navigation Protection Act and the new Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, which made fish and their habitat even more vulnerable. The House of Commons Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans (FOPO) is charged with reviewing the Fisheries Act and ensuring that Aboriginal peoples are consulted and their rights, Aboriginal title, interests and concerns taken into account. That should be one of the guiding principles of this Review. 1.2. Interconnections among the four components of the Review This Review is one of four components being studied separately by separate committees observing different deadlines. This approach limits the analytic scope by making it impossible to analyze the obvious interconnections suggested by the name of this extensive undertaking. Nobody can deny that projects relating primarily to fisheries, navigation, federal environmental assessments or the activities of the National Energy Board (NEB) can have significant impacts on related areas. For example, if the Fisheries Act is not amended in parallel to and congruently with the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, projects in or near aquatic environments could be implemented without due consideration for Aboriginal fishing rights or respect for the principles of sustainable development. 1 This submission was prepared in collaboration with the First Nations of Quebec and Labrador Sustainable Development Institute, an organization created by the Assembly of First Nations of Quebec and Labrador. Page 2 of 10 Review of Environmental and Regulatory Processes 2. Review of the Fisheries Act 2. Quality of consultation Although the government is committed and constitutionally bound to ensure the full participation of Aboriginal groups and the inclusion of their rights and interests in this Review process, we feel we must notify FOPO and the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans of certain deficiencies, such as significant time and funding constraints. The deadline for submissions to FOPO was November 30, 2016, even though FOPO itself only began its study on October 31. In addition, we received notice of funding on November 18, which was more than two months after we submitted our request for funding. Being unable to access financial support before then, we had to prepare our submission between November 18 and 30, 2016, which is utterly unrealistic and unacceptable. It is difficult to understand why the committee acted this way, so we seek assurances that we will be consulted on all forthcoming bills and regulations that could have an adverse impact on our rights and interests regarding our traditional territories and the resources therein. We wish to remind you that, in addition to Canada’s commitments regarding Aboriginal consultation (signature of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, guidelines on Aboriginal consultation and accommodation), a number of Supreme Court decisions have also established the government’s obligation to consult us (Haïda, Tsilhqot’in, Mikisew). According to Canada’s guidelines on Aboriginal consultation and accommodation, consultation involves two phases: planning and consultation. Phase 1 involves (1) assembling the necessary information, (2) analyzing the information, (3) designing a consultation process, and (4) identifying and articulating our position. Phase 2, consultation, gives us an opportunity to (1) share and discuss our concerns, (2) negotiate accommodations, (3) implement accommodations, and (4) monitor accommodations and adjust them as necessary. 3. Our three First Nations As explained below, and subject to the preliminary note, our three First Nations are closely associated and connected through the negotiation of a treaty with Canada and Quebec. Because of our close association, we share our thoughts on a number of issues that affect us all, including issues related to Canada’s Review. 3.1. Pekuakamiulnuatsh First Nation2 Pekuakamiulnuatsh First Nation comprises 6,601 members, 2,074 of whom reside in the community of Mashteuiatsh. The name of our First Nation means “Innu of Pekuakami”, a reference to our homeland, the Pekuakami (Lac Saint-Jean) watershed. Known for its iconic species, the landlocked salmon, the Pekuakami is critical to the fish supply for members of the community of Mashteuiatsh. Many other bodies of water on family territory supply members who occupy and use the Nitassinan (ancestral territory). Our reserve is 15 km2, and our ancestral territory covers nearly 92,000 km2, excluding the southwest portion (21,000 km2), which is shared with the Mashteuiatsh, Essipit and Pessamit First Nations. 3.2. Essipit Innu First Nation 2 Subject to preliminary note. Page 3 of 10 Review of Environmental and Regulatory Processes 2. Review of the Fisheries Act Essipit Innu First Nation is located 40 km east of Tadoussac on the north shore of the St. Laurence estuary. As of October 31, 2016, the band comprised 745 members, 207 of them residing on reserve territory. Originally 0.4 km2, the reserve was expanded to 0.89 km2 in 1998. Approximately half of the 8,403 km2 Nitassinan is located within the Quebec administrative region of Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean, and the other half is located in the North Shore region. It derives much of its economic development from the river. In addition to traditional hunting and fishing activties within the territory, hunting and fishing for food (cod, rockfish, whelk, halibut, clam, seal, waterfowl, etc.) occurs in the northern part of the river. The community is also vertically integrated in commercial fishing activities including vessel operation, processing plants, retail and restaurant fish markets and a distribution network for sales in Quebec and seafood exports. 3.3. Nutashkuan First Nation Nutashkuan First Nation, located at the boundary of the Middle North Shore approximately 960 km from Quebec City has a population of more than 1,100. Its Nitassinan (ancestral territory) covers nearly 52,000 km2. Part of its Nitassinan straddles the Jacques Cartier Strait in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and includes a significant portion of Anticosti Island. Atlantic salmon often frequent its many rivers, such as the Natashquan and the Aguanish, and this vast territory supports the traditional fishery as well as commercial fishing in its marine environments (cod, halibut, lobster, crab and other groundfish). 3.4. Land claims Our three First Nations, Canada and Quebec have signed the Agreement-in-Principle of General Nature (APGN), which is the basis for a treaty that has been under negotiation for more than 10 years. This modern treaty will define the effects of our rights and our Aboriginal title on our respective ancestral territories. This negotiation with the Government of Canada fully informs this brief. 3.5. Water and Innu Aitun3 There can be no life without water. That is why water is of such great spiritual and physical importance to the Innu: the Innu belong to the world, not the other way around. We are an inseparable part of the environment, and water is therefore an integral part of Innu life. From time immemorial, we have been practicing Innu Aitun, our traditional activities, and using lakes and rivers to travel throughout our territory to reach family territory, feed ourselves, trade and meet with other First Nations. Summer gatherings were held at the mouths of major rivers or on the shores of big lakes. On these bodies of water and from their shores, we fished (salmon, landlocked salmon, walleye, trout, whitefish, burbot, pike, etc.) and hunted (migratory birds, beaver, caribou, moose, bear, seal, etc.). To this day, we often travel by water within our territory, and much of our food supply is drawn from the water all year round. The food fishery is still important for subsistence in our communities. Any obstacle to fishing or to the integrity of fish habitat will have an adverse effect on our subsistence activities. 3 See definition in APGN (p. 4). Page 4 of 10 Review of Environmental and Regulatory Processes 2. Review of the Fisheries Act Life within our territory (Nitassinan) and Innu Aitun, endure because they are heavily based on traditional knowledge, which is constantly being updated and modernized. Because of that knowledge, our understanding of the impact of projects on the environment differs from that of proponents, scientists and technicians. Our knowledge enables us to contribute to impact assessment and problem-solving when projects affect fish and fish habitat. For example, sampling plans can benefit from the knowledge of Aboriginal occupants of the territory.