Lands Department Message

On behalf of the Lands Department, I am pleased to provide an update to the sixth annual Industry Review Newsletter. This newsletter provides a look into the industrial and other natural resource management activities happening in Tahltan Territory. In the past year, we have seen advancements in Tahltan’s role as decision makers on Tahltan lands with the announcement of a consent agreement process for the Eskay Creek Revitalization Project.

Nalaine Morin

Lands Director We are making significant progress on our Tahltan Stewardship Initiative (TSI) project and are looking forward to this year’s work which will include advancing plans for Tahltan engagement and participation, development of Tahltan policies under the Lands Governance Framework and advancements in our Tahltan land stewardship planning. We have been very busy, and we continue to develop and grow to ensure that we are meeting the needs of our Nation as well as providing the tools our Tahltan government needs to make informed decisions.

The COVID-19 pandemic has limited our opportunities to meet in person but the Lands Department has become well versed in using online virtual platforms to ensure that we can continue our work on important projects like the TSI, meeting with industry and government on major projects and completing other tasks required by the Lands Department like reviewing referrals for projects. We miss meeting with the Tahltan Nation and look forward to opportunities to travel into the territory in 2022 for Tahltan engagement, industry site visits and inspections. Our work in the Lands Department has always been and continues to be grounded in Tahltan laws, knowledge, and people. Our mission for the department is, “A strong and competent lands administration that supports the Tahltan Nation to make informed natural resource management decisions through robust systems and tools based on Tahltan knowledge, laws and world views.” The TSI and other projects help us to achieve and fulfill our mission.

The Lands Department is developing new opportunities to work more collaborative with industry partners on major projects. In 2021, the Lands Department and the Tahltan Heritage Resources Environmental Assessment Team (THREAT) worked with companies like Newcrest and Skeena Resources on the development of technical subcommittees to share information and engage on topics related to the project including major permit applications, environmental assessment, and project design topics like closure and reclamation planning. This new technical engagement approach allows for more information sharing, open discussions on topics such as risk and potential mitigation and the opportunity for Tahltan knowledge and values to be considered and incorporated in earlier stages of a project’s design. In 2021, we participated in over 100 workshops with industry partners through these processes. We are also continuing to increase our capacity for major projects and have contracted new experts in the area of block cave design and social impact assessment.

Our mission for the department is, “A strong and competent lands administration that supports the Tahltan Nation to make informed natural resource management decisions through robust systems and tools based on Tahltan knowledge, laws and world views.” The TSI and other projects help us to achieve and fulfill our mission.

The Lands Department have developed a strategy to support our work in environmental assessment which includes a Tahltan values, Tahltan sustainability and risk criteria which we will apply in our work on environmental assessments and permit reviews.

The strategy will be an important tool moving forward to provide Tahltan, government and industry a more robust and defined process that supports Tahltan in our role on making decisions for projects.

I look forward to 2022 and continuing our work through the Lands Department to support our ongoing vision which is to ensure “Successful stewardship of Tahltan Lands based on Tahltan laws, knowledge and world views.” Tahltan Territory is very well known for its vast resources and for its progressive and innovative approaches to governance and management. The work of our natural resource departments over the next couple of years will be key to supporting other governance initiatives like Tahltan decision making, which is quickly becoming our reality and path forward for projects in Tahltan Territory.