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Qikiqtani signs Inuit impact benefit agreement with Baffinland Proposed Mary River project would represent the Northernmost open pit mine
Daron Letts
Northern News Services
Published Monday, September 16, 2013
IQALUIT
The Qikiqtani Inuit Association (QIA) opened the door for the North's largest industrial development to date by signing an Inuit impact benefit agreement with Baffinland Iron Mines Corporation on Sept. 6.
Qikiqtani Inuit Association president Okalik Eegeesiak, right, signs an Inuit impact and benefit agreement associated with the proposed Mary River mine on Sept. 6 at the Discovery Lodge Hotel in Iqaluit as Baffinland Iron Mines Corporation president and CEO Tom Paddon looks on. - Miranda Scotland/NNSL photo |
The QIA also signed a commercial production lease and water compensation agreement with the Canadian-based mining company following more than five years of negotiations.
"This is a historic deal for Inuit of the Qikiqtaaluk region and for all of Nunavut and has the potential to positively change the economic and social fabric of the territory," QIA president Okalik Eegeesiak stated in a news release last week. "We are satisfied with the terms and conditions of the agreement which maximizes benefits while minimizing impacts."
The $4-billion Mary River project, located approximately 160 kilometres south of Pond Inlet and 1,000 kilometres northwest of Iqaluit on Baffin Island, contains one of the world's largest and richest undeveloped iron ore deposits, and would represent the Northernmost open pit mine.
The site contains at least 365 tonnes of high-grade iron ore, which is pure enough not to require extra processing before going to market, according to Baffinland's estimates.
Significant infrastructure developments in addition to the open pit mine are projected to include buildings at Milne Inlet and the expansion of the Tote Road, a 150-kilometre railway from Mary River to Steensby Inlet, where an all-season deep water port and ship-loading facility would be constructed.
The project is expected to proceed in five phases, concluding with an estimated three-year reclamation phase and a minimum five-year post-closure environmental monitoring phase.
During its 21-year operational lifespan, permanent work camps will be maintained at Mary River, Milne Inlet and Steensby Inlet, with additional camps as needed along the railway line.
At the peak of construction, which is expected to take about five years, more than 1,000 workers will be required. The number of workers will fall between 700 and 900 during the production phase.
The first shipment of ore may depart the Steensby port as early as 2019, according to the corporation's amended environmental impact statement, the review for which is slated for completion by the Nunavut Impact Review Board by spring.
Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Minister Bernard Valcourt granted Baffinland a Type A Water Licence approval through the Nunavut Water Board on July 15.
During the years of negotiations, the QIA established Mary River Project committees in seven of the region's 13 communities between Quttiktuq and Sanikiluaq.
The project is scheduled to begin next summer with the early revenue phase, during which 3.5 million tonnes of iron ore will be transported annually from the mine site between 2015 and 2018. The ore will travel along Tote Road to the Milne Inlet Port, where it will be shipped to market during the 90-day open-water season.
During these years, QIA plans to train Inuit workers and assess social and cultural impacts.
"We are very pleased to have concluded the negotiation of these important agreements with the QIA. We believe that this accomplishment clearly demonstrates Baffinland's commitment to working co-operatively with the Qikiqtani Inuit Association, which represents the interests of residents of the Qikiqtaaluk region," stated Tom Paddon, president and CEO of Baffinland. "Resource development projects such as Mary River have the ability to have a profound positive effect and we will be working closely with the QIA to achieve this goal."
The QIA, which represents more than 14,000 Inuit of the Baffin region, manages the Inuit-owned lands in the area on behalf of beneficiaries. It is one of three regional Inuit associations affiliated with Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated, which implements and monitors the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement.
Article 26 of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement requires that an Inuit impact and benefit agreement be finalized before any major industrial project may begin.
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