First impressions leave much to be desired in Ring of Fire

The Ontario government is good at using the right words when it comes to discussing First Nations involvement in the Ring of Fire. But as last week’s Cliff’s Resources smelter decision showed, it remains unwilling – or unable – to put those good words into play when it comes to making decisions.
The announcement that Cliffs selected Sudbury to locate its Ring of Fire smelter was met with disappointment from across northwestern Ontario. The provincial government obviously anticipated that reaction. Two cabinet ministers, including Aboriginal Affairs Minister Kathleen Wynne, were sent to Thunder Bay to break the news. They repeatedly expressed their condolences to leaders of the region, while emphasizing that locating the smelter in Sudbury was a business decision made by Cliffs.
Another sentiment came out between the lines. The ministers may have wanted the processing plant to go to Greenstone, but they were also afraid it would go to Quebec instead. Despite the government’s apparent preference for Greenstone, there was no chance it was going to do anything to jeopardize the smelter being located in Sudbury. After all, if you live in Toronto, Sudbury is northern Ontario too, and if you’re part of the Ontario government, anywhere within the province is better than anywhere outside it.
That attitude may make sense from a provincial perspective, but it misses two very important points when it comes to First Nations involvement in the Ring of Fire.
The first may seem minor to those in the south, but it is reflective of government’s attitudes towards the North for the province’s entire history. If you are from Marten Falls, or Aroland, or any one of the First Nations with traditional lands around the Ring of Fire, Sudbury is not in the North. It is far to the south, in another part of the country altogether.
Putting the processing plant in Greenstone, as a consortium of First Nations and northwestern Ontario municipalities suggested, would have sent a clear message that the company and the government respect the territories that the minerals are being taken from. It would have signified an understanding of the importance of building relationships with the local people.
And it would have set a clear precedent for other companies working the Ring of Fire that providing jobs, economic development and infrastructure to communities of the region is essential in getting these mines off the ground.
Instead, Ontario took the easy way out and allowed Cliffs to locate the processing plant in Sudbury. While the ministers were right in saying that the Cliffs project is just the first of many for the region, this was the precedent-setting case. And Ontario showed clearly how unable or unwilling it is to make sure companies are required to develop the actual region where the minerals are found.
Which brings up the second point from last week’s announcement.
First Nations around the Ring of Fire have been quite accommodating to the government and the companies. For the most part, the bands have refrained from playing hardball on mining. They have expressed interest in working with industry and government on getting this development right. They have been open to sharing their hopes, aspirations and suggestions for how the Ring of Fire can include and benefit First Nations people.
They were doing all of that with the expectation that their ideas would be listened to.
Cliffs may talk about how it is only one company of many that could potentially be working in the Ring of Fire. But there is no way to separate Cliffs from the big picture. Each project that goes forward sets precedents for those that come after; not only through the roads, rail lines and power systems developed, but also by how it moves through the process of getting the mine up and running.
If Ontario really wanted the Ring of Fire to be different than other developments across the country that ignored First Nations, it has missed its first good chance. The province was dealing with willing First Nations who were widely in favour of mining. It had an opportunity to show it was serious about First Nations consultation and accommodation. And it could have done so with just a few changes to what the company was pushing for.
In the end, communities most affected by the Cliffs decision really only wanted a few things. One, put the processing plant in Greenstone so local people could have a better chance of getting those jobs. Two, connect the transportation network to the communities along the route. Three, power the mine with hydro so the communities surrounding the development could tie into the electricity grid.
Sure, the Cliffs decision is only the first step in a decades-long development that will drastically change the region. But as everyone knows, first impressions are often lasting. Ontario had an opportunity to show it was serious about working with First Nations. Instead, it took the easy way out.