ABORIGINAL
LAND & WATER

PROGRAM CO-CHAIRS

Grand Chief Allan Adam
Treaty 8 First Nations of Alberta
Chief of Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation

R. Lee Francoeur
Maurice Law Barristers & Solicitors

HALF-DAY POST CONFERENCE WORKSHOP | Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Wetlands, Riparian.05 Areas, Watershed Management, State of the Watershed Reporting

Jay S. White, M.Sc., P.Biol.
President, Aquality Environmental Consulting Ltd.

MARKETING PARTNERS

MEDIA PARTNER

• Chiefs, Community Leaders and Band Council Members
• First Nations, Métis and Inuit Community Members
• Federal, Provincial and Municipal Representatives
• Land Use and Sustainable Development Managers
• Land and Water Resource Managers, Administrators
• Chief Negotiators, Treaty Negotiators and Mediators
• Claim Negotiators
• Environmental Natural Resources Managers, Consultants, Policy Advisors and Regulators
• Natural Resource and Economic Development Officers
• Infrastructure Engineers
• Wastewater Collection or Treatment System Managers or Operators

• Private Sector Consulting firms involved in wastewater engineering or management projects
• Industrial, Commercial and Institutional Customers of Water/Wastewater Services
• Academic, and Environmental Stakeholder Groups
• Legal Counsel practicing Aboriginal, Environmental, Commercial and Constitutional Law or Negotiations
• Regulator and Environmental Policy Makers
• Senior Executives, Directors and Managers of Companies in: Energy, Hydropower, Wind Power – Green Energy, Mining, Forestry, Pulp and Paper, Oil & Gas (natural resources firms), Land Development Sectors, Fisheries
• Business Developers and Entrepreneurs

“Land and water” are of the highest importance to our people. The need to develop strategies that address the challenges of managing these increasingly important issues is an on-going process with many challenges and considerations. While implementing best practices is paramount there must also be consideration of the community, regional requirements and traditional values.

Forestry, oil drilling, mining and mineral exploration, pipelines and road building can bring opportunities for economic development, jobs and training. Many Aboriginal family members continue to pursue a traditional life-style based on hunting and fishing and relate to the spirit connection to the land and water. On the other hand, these projects can also bring environmental destruction, abrupt cultural change and fundamental changes in the way First Nation people use the land. In extreme cases, the disruption to the eco-system can also bring unanticipated disease and illness to some communities. Aboriginal communities often become divided between having to choose between supporting projects for community benefits and leaving a legacy of destruction that affects their communities’ relationships and obligations to their Lands.

This Insight Information conference will focus on recent developments in water management issues, including the advancements, initiatives and developments in providing sustainable drinking water, preserving water resources, managing wastewater and addressing polluted waters that are affecting the living conditions, health and economies in First communities. In addition to the need for meaningful and comprehensive environmental stewardship, the conference will also discuss strategies for First Nations to achieve many of the economic benefits without sacrificing the very lands and resources that sustained them since time immemorial.

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn about recent developments in Aboriginal development land and water management that can guide your community. You will gain insights from industry and Aboriginal leaders who have been through the process and have learned key lessons about successfully working together.

We look forward to meeting you in Edmonton.

Grand Chief Allan Adam
Treaty 8 First Nations of Alberta
Chief of Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation

R. Lee Francoeur 
Partner
Maurice Law Barristers & Solicitors

Monday, September 13, 2010

8:15

Registration and Coffee

9:00

Elder’s Opening Prayer

Welcoming Remarks from Insight Information

9:05

Co-Chair’s Opening Remarks

Grand Chief Allan Adam
Treaty 8 First Nations of Alberta
Chief of Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation

9:15

Shared Decision Making: Moving Beyond Consultation and Accommodation in Protecting and Managing First Nation Lands and Resources

R. Lee Francoeur 
Partner
Maurice Law Barristers & Solicitors

• Importance of “Land and Water” management to First Nations
• Legal and practical limitations of “Consultation and Accommodation”
• Challenges to achieving effective and meaningful shared decision making
• Strategies for overcoming obstacles
• Moving toward full self-government

10:15

Networking Coffee Break

10:30

Non-Traditional Development Impacts

Lee D. Wilson
Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry
University of Saskatchewan  

Non-Traditional development has had unforeseen consequences nationally and internationally.  In this presentation, examples of non-traditional development impacts observed globally and nationally will be provided.  Some strategies that address water quality and quantity will be presented.  In particular, the importance of point-of-use water treatment for Aboriginal communities will be discussed.

11:15

Maximizing the Economic Value of First Nations Land – What is Possible within the Canadian Legislative Context

Jerome Slavik
Partner
Ackroyd LLP

• An overview of federal legislation re. Indian reserve lands
• Working inside and outside the parameters of federal legislation
• Strategies to increase the economic and commercial value of Indian reserve lands
• Using aboriginal interests in “traditional lands” to access economic opportunities

12:00

Networking Luncheon

1:15

Partnerships Between Business, Government and Aboriginal Businesses or Communities

Merle C. Alexander
Co-chair, Aboriginal Practice Group
Boughton Law Corporation
Member of Kitasoo Xai’xais First Nation, Tsimshian Nation

• Project between Silvercorp – a Chinese owned company and the Kaska Dena Council
• Moving to successful partnerships: negotiating individualized agreements for land and water access, availability and resources
• Ensuring that the Kaska consent to all aspects of the project is integral to the advancement of the project
• Using incremental agreements to achieve the best results
• A critical balance – where to and how do we do it better?
• Imperative role of integrating traditional ecological knowledge throughout all decision-making in a project

2:15

Water as a Natural Resource – Reconciling Water Protection and Management with Aboriginal and Treaty Rights

JoAnn P. Jamieson
Twyman Jamieson LLP

• Indigenous perspective on water
• Water as a property right, water as an indigenous right
• Regulatory regime for the conservation and management of water in Alberta
• Management of water under the new land-use framework
• The protection of the treaty right to fish
• Claims for Aboriginal rights and title to water
• Use of fresh water for industry activity/protection of in-flow needs
• Consultation with First Nation and Métis communities regarding rights and traditional use

3:00

Networking Refreshment Break

3:15

Traditional Knowledge Studies Used in the Assessment of Land Use Impact Analysis

Stephen Lindley
Vice President, Aboriginal and Northern Affairs; and Director, Environment
SNC-Lavalin Inc.

• Traditional knowledge studies as a source of land use data
• Interaction of traditional knowledge studies and western science as applied in environmental impact assessment
• Traditional knowledge studies as community engagement on land use

4:15

Unlocking First Nation and Northern Human Resources Potential

Lawrence Daniels
Chief Executive Officer
FireSpirit Inc

• A brief history of FireSpirit and the services we provide to communities and employers
• Job Coaching in our communities: our story from infancy to maturity
• The complexity of developing broad employment strategies in First Nations
• Building communities through empowerment, employment, and transformative solutions

5:00

Co-Chair’s Summation and
Conference Adjourns for the Day

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

9:00

Remarks from Insight Information

9:05

Co-Chair’s Opening Address

R. Lee Francoeur 
Partner
Maurice Law Barristers & Solicitors

9:15

The Implications of the Ministers Advisory Group Recommendations Regarding Proposed Changes to the Water Allocation System

Clayton D. Leonard
MacPherson Leslie & Tyerman LLP

• Review of the MAG recommendations
• Implications of water markets for First Nations
• Proposed changes to groundwater allocation
• A brief history of groundwater on First Nation reserve lands
• Are negotiated solutions possible/probable?

10:00

Networking Coffee Break

10:15

First Nation’s Participation in Community Environmental Stewardship

Melody Lepine, BSc. ENCS
Director, Government & Industry Relations
Mikisew Cree First Nation (MCFN)

Matthew Whitehead
Master`s in Environment and Management Candidate
TEK Coordinator, Government & Industry Relations
Mikisew Cree First Nation (MCFN)

• TEK and TLU based approach to Environmental Stewardship
• Integrating MCFN TEK into a Community Based Environmental Monitoring Project
• Reviewing the Lower Athabasca Water Management Framework that is being developed by both DFO and AENV from a MCFN TEK and TLU perspective

11:15

An Integrated Watershed Management Plan

Jay S. White, M.Sc., P.Biol.
Principal
Aquality Environmental Consulting Ltd.

• Driftpile’s Watershed Management Plan in central Alberta
• A “broad scale water resources plan”
• How to knit together the differing geographies covered by the watershed
• The accompanying land uses
• Industry uses
• Layers of regulation including those from small municipalities, large cities, the provincial and federal government
• Ongoing requirements for FNs to develop source water protection plans and to work with provinces and conservation authorities

12:00

Networking Luncheon

1:00

Issues Facing Alberta’s Water

Sheila Muxlow
Interim Director
Sierra Club Prairie

How we need to build on a water consciousness collectively. Appreciating Indigenous, as well as scientific knowledge, to ensure that this resource is effectively managed in a way that meets the needs of our communities and the environment.

• Climate change
• Over allocation
• Pollution growth

1:45

Integral Relations Between Water and the Sto:lo: Foundations for Cultural Landscape Management

David Schaepe, Ph.D.
Co-Director / Senior Archaeologist
Sto:lo Research and Resource Management Centre
Adjunct Professor, School of Resource & Environmental Management
Simon Fraser University

• Identifying cultural relations between water and the Stó:lō
• Reviewing a model of Stó:lō health
• Defining threats to the integrity of Stó:lō relationships with water and potential impacts to community health – an example from Sumas Lake
• Developing mechanisms for addressing impacts and managing land and water-based resources – creating and implementing a Cultural Landscape Management Program among the Stó:l?

2:30

Networking Refreshment Break

2:45

Training of First Nation Operators in Canada

Ken Mattes
President
Circuit Rider Trainers Professional Association (CRTPA )

• What is the Circuit Rider Program
• How does the Program work
• Where is it being used
• What does it accomplish
• Provincial certification of First Nation operators
• The CRTPA Association
• The Circuit Rider Program accomplishments
• The success stories

3:30

Traditional Knowledge and Information Management: Utilizing Traditional Knowledge in Environmental Assessments

Brian MacDonald
Barristers & Solicitors

• Factors to consider in the development of policy for managing a First Nations traditional knowledge for internal and external use
• Developing guidelines for researchers and proponents

4:15

Half-Day Post Conference Workshop | Wednesday, September 15, 2010 9:00 A.M. to NOON

Wetlands, Riparian Areas, Watershed Management, State of the Watershed Reporting

Workshop Facilitator
Jay S. White, M.Sc., P.Biol., President, Aquality Environmental Consulting Ltd.

Wetland Theory, Classification, and Policies

Part 1: Wetland Classification and Functions

Part 2: Policies Affecting Wetlands in Alberta

• Stewart and Kantrud and Canadian Wetland Classification Systems
• Flood attenuation, water quality and quantity modulation, climate impacts, biodiversity and stormwater management
• Federal, provincial and municipal policies affecting wetlands in Alberta
• Economic valuation of wetlands will be addressed at the provincial scale

Jay White is an aquatic scientist and Professional Biologist with a M.Sc. degree in Ecology from the University of Alberta. He was a research associate at the University of Alberta’s Sustainable Forest Management Network until 2000, when he left to form Aquality Environmental Consulting Ltd. Aquality’s focus areas include State of the Watershed Reporting, Watershed Management Planning, wetland design, delineation and restoration projects. Jay currently sits on the Executive of the Alberta Water Council and Inside Education. Water governance, education and sustainability are his current topics of interest and he has spoken to audiences throughout Alberta.

Register 3 delegates for the main conference at regular price at the same time and you’re entitled to register a fourth person from your organization at no charge. For other group discounts, please call 1-888-777-1707. All discounts must be redeemed when booking, discounts will not be valid or applied after this time.