Aariak sets out how Nunavut will “complete the map of Canada”

Nunavut Premier Eva Aariak wants to see Canada connected from sea to sea, that is, from northern sea to northern sea.

Reshaping the map of Canada will require a new effort at nation building, Aariak said Nov. 3 in a speech at the University of Toronto.

To accomplish that, Canada must look North, invest in northern infrastructure and give Nunavut more control over its lands and waters, she said.

“We seek more integration with Canada, not less,” Aariak said. “As it stands, Nunavut is joined to the rest of Canada by only the thinnest of threads.”

Nunavut must have ownership and control over its lands and waters through the process of devolution, she said.

Nunavut wants a devolution deal to gain more control over lands and resources inside the territory, and to the royalties that would flow from the development of mines, oil and natural gas.

“Devolution is the key to moving Nunavut from being the recipient of subsidies to being the beneficiary of investment,” Aariak said.

To leave Nunavut — Canada’s only territory with a majority aboriginal population — as the only jurisdiction without control over its resources would be “backsliding towards the paternalism and colonialism of the past,” she said.

“The world is knocking on our door,” Aariak said. “Why would Nunavummiut agree to see our resources leave the territory if we are asked to assume most of the risks and receive few of the benefits that other Canadians enjoy? This comes down to equality.”

“Completing the map of Canada” also means building a reliable telecommunications network, better airports, marine ports and modern energy infrastructure, she said.

”An aging fleet of diesel generators currently powers all 25 of our communities,” Aariak said. “Together they consume over 170 million litres of fuel each year and contribute to the damage Nunavummiut are experiencing from a changing climate.”

This comes at a cost of over $200 million each year that Nunavummiut must pay to fuel suppliers outside the territory, she said.

This is why her government is exploring hydroelectric, solar and even tidal energy, she said.

“Completing the map of Canada also means building the ports that will support a robust fishery and enable the transport of resources in and out of the Arctic,” Aariak said. “Along Canada’s third coast, the harbours that the Maritimes and the pacific take for granted are non-existent.”

Due to the lack of marine infrastructure, Nunavut’s fishing vessels must travel to offload their catches in Greenland, while many of the territory’s mineral deposits are “stranded,” she said.

That’s a message Aariak also hammered at during the recent Oceans Innovations conference in Iqaluit.

There, she said, lack of basic marine infrastructure will hold back Nunavut’s future development and even endanger the environment.