Minister defends Far North Act during local visit

Opponents of the Far North Act might just be reluctant of change, says Ontario’s minister of natural resources.

It will take time for opponents such as Nishnawbe Aski Nation to see how the recently passed bill can help First Nations communities in the Far North said Minister of Natural Resources Linda Jeffrey.

Jeffrey said sometimes people say they want change but are hesitant once it happens.

"When something is new people are reluctant to see how to support something right out of the gate until they’ve seen how it works in a practical way," Minister Jeffrey said Thursday at a Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Da Vinci Centre Thursday.

"I think often when you here about something new you’re kind of ‘I don’t know if I want to try that or I don’t know if I want to test that’."

Jeffrey said while NAN as an organization might be opposed, she has spoken to individuals all summer in First Nation communities who support the act. She added that eight or nine amendments were made to the act based on those conversations.

There are now several communities working on land study plans through the act already, but aren’t public about it.

"I think political organizations have a role to play and they present a position often that is of a broader nature," said Jeffrey.

After speaking with community members and chiefs throughout the Far North, Jeffrey said she went back to the province’s lawyers and figured out a way to make sure land-use under the act begins and ends with First Nations people.

"It essentially put the pen in the hand of the firs nation communities that they initiate plans that they have final approval on those plans," Jeffrey said.

Ontario can’t afford not to address the incoming demands from mining and energy companies from around the world looking to do business in the North Jeffrey said. The act will help First Nations communities figure out what'’ best for their own back yard.

"The First Nations communities are not equipped to manage those pressures so they need capacity they need to have a plan in place in order to maximize the ability to prosper from all these investments,"