First Nations must be equal partners in Ring of Fire: Rae.

• Author: Migneault, Jonathan
• Position: MINING

O ntario has lagged behind other provinces--namely Quebec and British Columbia--when it comes to its dealings with First Nations, said Bob Rae.

The former Premier of Ontario, became the chief negotiator for the Matawa First Nations--representing nine Native governments--last year.

In his first role outside of the political arena on Parliament Hill, Rae has worked to develop a framework that would form the basis for a partnership between the Ontario government, the Matawa First Nations and the companies seeking to profit from the Ring of Fire.

Prior to a Mar. 6 speech at Laurentian University, Rae told Northern Ontario Business that Quebec and BC have have been much more open than Ontario to sharing management decisions with First Nations and granting authority to regional governments.

"If you look at the kinds of agreements that have been signed in other provinces you see very clearly that you're looking at a way of not simply consulting with First Nations, but of giving First Nations the ability to take real responsibility for the building and management of infrastructure, the making of economic and social decisions, and participating fully in decisions affecting the natural environment," Rae said.

Rae said those provinces have had more open discussions with First Nations because they were not encumbered with the numbered treaties that have coloured Ontario's history with Aboriginals and meant that First-Nations gave up any claims to the land, at least in the government's eyes.

Land claim negotiations in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and the Yukon have also led to more significant sharing of power and responsibility between First Nations and the territorial governments, Rae said.

According to the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, the Ring of Fire is expected to generate $25 billion in economic activity across numerous sectors in the province over its first 32 years of development. In the same period, the Ring of Fire would generate an estimated $6.7 billion in government tax revenues.

The Ring of Fire is also expected to generate 4,500 to 5,500 long-term and well-paying...