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MIKAELA MACKENZIE \/ FREE PRESS<\/p>\n
Jamie Wilson, Manitoba Hydro\u2019s first Indigenous board chair, plans to meet First Nations chiefs in person this year, saying he wants to work in tandem with communities, not against them.<\/p>\n
Opaskwayak recently took Ottawa to court over a Grand Rapids hydro dam and its impact on band members, CBC reported.<\/p>\n
His home First Nation is hardly the only one; Manitoba Hydro has faced lawsuits from Norway House<\/a>, Black River<\/a>, Berens River<\/a>, Dakota Tipi, Canupawakpa Dakota<\/a> and York Factory<\/a> over the past year.<\/p>\n Claims include harm stemming from a Lake Winnipeg regulation project and Hydro operating on territory communities hadn\u2019t agreed to cede.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom my outside eye, it\u2019s clear that Manitoba Hydro can\u2019t continue with business as usual,\u201d said Byron Williams, a lawyer from the Public Interest Law Centre who works on Hydro-related files.<\/p>\n Williams pointed to two major licences needing renewal this year \u2014 the Churchill River Diversion and Lake Winnipeg regulation.<\/p>\n The Churchill River Diversion, operational in 1976, directs water to five generating stations that account for roughly 75 per cent of Manitoba\u2019s power generation.<\/p>\n The Lake Winnipeg regulation project also began operating in 1976. It manipulates the lake\u2019s water levels for power generation. Hydro\u2019s licences for the two projects expire in September and August, respectively.<\/p>\n Manitoba may be in a \u201cconstitutional pinch\u201d with the licence renewals, Williams said, adding the government should conduct a thorough consultation process with affected First Nations. Last November, Hydro applied for short-term licence extensions; the province has indicated it\u2019s working with communities on new licence renewal guidelines, a Hydro spokesperson said.<\/p>\n Williams applauded the Crown corporation\u2019s move to appoint an Indigenous board chair.<\/p>\n \u201cIt suggests that Manitoba Hydro is perhaps belatedly coming to the understanding that a core aspect of its future is better relations with First Nations and with M\u00e9tis people,\u201d Williams said.<\/p>\n Lawsuits from First Nations will happen, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s Canadian jurisprudence and there\u2019s Canadian processes that I think have to play themselves out,\u201d he said. \u201cEven while that\u2019s going on, I think it\u2019s important to invest in relationships on both sides (Hydro and First Nations).\u201d<\/p>\n Wilson plans to meet chiefs in person and is lining up travel dates for the summer, he said. Simultaneously, he\u2019s working as Red River College Polytechnic\u2019s vice-president of Indigenous strategy, research and business development.<\/p>\n He was commissioner of the Treaty Relations Commission of Manitoba from 2010 to 2016. In 2016, he was named deputy minister of growth, enterprise and trade under Brian Pallister\u2019s government.<\/p>\n Wilson said he\u2019s already heard from First Nations leadership wanting to work with Manitoba Hydro. He cited \u201ccreating a sense of entrepreneurship\u201d as part of the reconciliation journey.<\/p>\n \u201cOur people were business leaders for hundreds of years in the North,\u201d Wilson said. \u201cHow do we replicate that mindset as we\u2019re going and talking to different entities?<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s\u2026 working together towards a future versus working independently towards a future and battle.\u201d<\/p>\n Procuring from Indigenous businesses is part of the strategy, Wilson said. Manitoba Hydro\u2019s 10-year plan highlights power generation from Indigenous majority-owned wind projects.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t John Woods \/ The Canadian Press Files<\/p>\n Pimicikamak Cree Nation Chief David Monias (left), whose community suffered a devastating four-day power outage in December, calls Wilson\u2019s appointment \u2018a good sign for reconciliation.\u2019<\/p>\n Hydro must address an \u201cunequal standard of reliability\u201d where northern communities don\u2019t have the backup resources southern areas do, Wilson said.<\/p>\n Pimicikamak Cree Nation experienced a four-day power outage that started Dec. 28 in which thousands of residents had to leave.<\/p>\n Chief David Monias characterized his community\u2019s dealings with Manitoba Hydro as \u201cnot such a good relationship\u201d Monday. He has a special interest in the soon-to-expire Lake Winnipeg regulation licence, saying water fluctuations have negatively impacted locals and the environment.<\/p>\n He said Pimicikamak wouldn\u2019t agree with a new licence until promises made through the Northern Flood Agreement are fulfilled.<\/p>\n The 1977 agreement outlines responsibilities governments and Manitoba Hydro have to communities affected by the Lake Winnipeg regulation and the Churchill River Diversion project.<\/p>\n \u201cOur benefits and entitlements become like a hot potato,\u201d Monias said. \u201cManitoba Hydro will throw to Canada (and) say that\u2019s Canada\u2019s responsibility. Canada will throw it back to Manitoba Hydro.\u201d<\/p>\n He\u2019d like investment into Pimicikamak, including for education, housing and a general store the community can run. He\u2019s considering legal action over how the Northern Flood Agreement has played out.<\/p>\n Manitoba Hydro is continually engaging with affected First Nations, spokesman Peter Chura said.<\/p>\n Wilson\u2019s appointment is \u201ca good sign for reconciliation,\u201d Monias said, adding he\u2019d like to meet the chair in person: \u201cI\u2019m hoping (Wilson) will start to make changes or propose changes.\u201d<\/p>\n Adrien Sala, the minister responsible for Manitoba Hydro, called Wilson a \u201cvisionary leader.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t \u201c(He\u2019ll) help Hydro to continue improving their working relationships with First Nations while it maintains a continued focus on improving reliability and affordability,\u201d said Sala.<\/p>\n Wilson said he\u2019s confident in Hydro staff who are working to avoid projected energy deficits in 2030.<\/p>\n \u201cWe look forward to working with (Wilson) and the board to continue providing Manitobans with safe, reliable and affordable energy,\u201d Chura wrote in a statement.<\/p>\n \u2014 with files from Erik Pindera<\/p>\n gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Gabrielle Pich\u00e9 Gabrielle Pich\u00e9 reports on business for the Free Press. She interned at the Free Press and worked for its sister outlet, Canstar Community News, before entering the business beat in 2021. Read more about Gabrielle<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Gabrielle produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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