MLA not happy with review process for Nunavut uranium mine

Baker Lake MLA Moses Aupaluktuq, seen here in the Nunavut legislature, says people in Baker Lake won’t be in town when the Nunavut Impact Review Board holds community consultations on the Kiggavik uranium mine project. (FILE PHOTO)

Baker Lake MLA Moses Aupaluktuq panned the environmental review process for Areva Canada’s Kiggavik uranium project in the legislative assembly March 14.

During question period, he asked Peter Taptuna, the minister of economic development and transportation, who is responsible for mining in the territory, and if the Nunavut government believes Areva is taking the review process seriously.

The process is comprehensive, and the Government of Nunavut is committed to participate in the environmental reviews as they come up, Taptuna said.

But Aupaluktuq said the community consultations scheduled by the Nunavut Impact Review Board to take place this spring in Baker Lake come right at a time when most people in this Kivalliq community are out hunting.

“People are out hunting, getting fish and caribou. We have a lot of people outdoors and not very many people are available to do the consultation process,” Aupaluktuq told Nunatsiaq News.

“The timeline is always geared toward the spring, [so] that’s a valid question that people ask,” he said.

The timing of the consultations won’t benefit the community, he said.

Community roundtable discussions are set for June 4 to June 6 at the Baker Lake community recreation centre.

A technical meeting will take place in Rankin Inlet May 28 to 30 at the Siniktarvik Hotel and Conference Centre.

Aupaluktuq said he also hears concerns from young people about whether or not the review process will be taken seriously.

Aupaluktuq said youth in Baker Lake have told him they’re worried about the environmental impact of a uranium mine.

“People want to voice their concerns about restricted land use areas as well as protected areas… caribou are very important to us,” he said.

Young hunters are especially concerned about being able to hunt .

“Nobody’s against the economic development and employment opportunities, but I wish people would focus on strengthening their education by any means possible. The mining sector is there, but it won’t be there forever and people have to learn to plan for the future,” Aupaluktuq said.

The Baker Lake MLA is not the only one to publicly criticize the dates for the Kiggavik Baker Lake consultations.

The Nunavummiut Makitagunarningit lobby group accused the NIRB this past December of preventing Baker Lake Inuit from participating in meetings, because of their spring dates.

After the technical review comments, the NIRB will offer Areva a chance to respond to the comments, before a pre-hearing conference in Baker Lake.