Cree-Nunavut marine deal gets royal assent

A offshore rights agreement between Canada, Nunavut and the James Bay Cree received royal assent Dec. 1.

The deal, signed July 7, 2010 in Chisasibi, Quebec, gives the James Bay Cree ownership over 80 per cent of the land area covered by a chain of islands in James Bay.

Those islands lie outside the Nunavut land claims settlement area, but within the boundaries of the Nunavut territory.

Because these islands are not part of the Nunavut land claims settlement area, no overlap agreement with the Inuit of Nunavut was required.

The James Bay islands covered by the agreement have been used primarily by Cree hunters, although Inuit whose descendants still live in Chisasibi have also hunted there, especially on Charlton Island, which is now uninhabited.

Charlton Island is the most southerly point of land within the legal boundaries of Nunavut.

As well as gaining surface and subsurface rights to the lands they own, the Cree are also entitled to resource royalty payments from any resource extraction developments that might occur in their offshore area, known as the Eeyou Marine Region.

The Cree will get a 50 per cent share of the first $2 million of resource royalties received by government, and a five per cent share of any additional resource royalties received by government.

The agreement also creates an impact review board, a planning commission and a wildlife board.

Nunavut will get one seat on each of those boards.

This map shows the Nunavut islands covered by the Eeyou Marine Region Land Claims Agreement. Though they lie within the boundaries of the Nunavut territory, they do not lie within the boundaries of the Nunavut land claims settlement area.