Crude oil tankers SFL Sabine, left, and Tarbet Spirit are seen docked at the Trans Mountain Westridge Marine Terminal, where crude oil from the expanded Trans Mountain Pipeline is loaded onto tankers, in Burnaby, B.C., on June 10.Relationships are evolving quickly between Indigenous communities and Canadian businesses seeking to develop energy and natural-resource projects on their territories – and that’s boosting demand for specialized legal know-how.
It’s sparked a raft of legal and regulatory questions that project proponents, First Nations and governments must wrestle with. Mr. Gladu, a member of the Sand Point First Nation in Ontario, wrote the foreword for a new book by lawyers Thomas Isaac and Jeremy Barretto that deals with the numerous legal aspects of the evolution in relationships between Indigenous peoples and broader Canadian society., it is a practical guide to Aboriginal law, land considerations, agreements between industry and Indigenous communities, along with tax and regulatory factors.
That is one example of Indigenous people championing major projects for their territories, then seeking partners from the corporate world that share their philosophy for development and environmental protection, Mr. Barretto said. In July, TC Energy Corp. agreed to sell a minority stake in its massive Nova Gas Transmission Ltd. and Foothills natural gas pipeline systems in Alberta for $1-billion to a consortium of dozens of Indigenous communities.