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PROJECT SHOWCASE

Community Planning

Swan Lake First Nation, Manitoba

Plan to provide decision-making support for:

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  • Integrated environmental management and planning

  • Land Laws (as part of First Nation Lands Management Act, 1999)

  • Governance and operational structures

  • Self-sufficient Community

Working with the Lands and Resources Department, under Chief and Council direction, we are developing a plan from a community-based approach built upon Swan Lake First Nation's values, visions and goals. The Plan is intended to guide development, management and protection of Reserve lands, through an orderly planning process to achieve short to long-term needs and requirements of the Community. 

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The technical components of the plan are based on review of existing biophysical conditions using GIS mapping and analysis, extensive community engagement with the Youth, Elders and general Membership, and development of key strategies for implementation to meet the needs of the Community, through measurable outcomes, which include:

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  • Important social and land use considerations;

  • Capacity building;

  • Education (plain language) - Swan Lake First Nation history;

  • Ensuring a healthy and Safe Community;

  • Economic development;

  • Protection of Traditional Use and cultural/heritage;

  • Protection and management of natural resources;

  • Housing and Infrastructure; and

  • Recreation Opportunities.

land use planning

Brokenhead Ojibway Nation, Manitoba
Treaty Land Entitlement (TLE)
Studies and Planning Support
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Study provided decision-making support for:

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  • Community consensus  on land selections

  • Acquisition of future Reserve Lands

  • Development capabilities based on potential land use(s)

  • Protection of Traditional / Cultural Use

Negotiations for outstanding Treaty Land Entitlement (TLE) began in the latter part of the 1970’s.  The purpose of the negotiations was to provide entitlement First Nations with lands to fulfill outstanding treaties signed between 1871 and 1910.  The Manitoba Treaty Land Entitlement Framework Agreement (Framework Agreement) was signed by the Province of Manitoba and Canada on May 29, 1997. 

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The Brokenhead Ojibway Nation signed onto the Framework Agreement in 1998 and is entitled to a number of acres of Crown Land and Other Land (purchase lands) and includes a federal payment under the terms of the Framework Agreement.
 

The  TLE Study assessed community based criteria and incorporated extensive consultation with the Membership to identify potential  land selections, and included review of:

 

  • Strategic locations and biophysical conditions for general development capabilities;

  • Social and economic development needs and opportunities;

  • Traditional Use and natural resources development and protection;

  • Regional development pressures and third party interests;

  • Existing land selections and confirmation with the Membership; and

  • Necessary documentation and mapping (1:50,000 scale) for submission to the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC).

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The work included strategic advice and consultation support to Brokenhead Ojibway Nation regarding community, TLE and comprehensive land use planning.

Environmental Planning

Brokenhead Ojibway Nation, Manitoba
Sustainable Development Plan
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The SDP provided decision-making support for:

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  • Land law development and implementation

  • Governance model

  • Departmental operation structure and reporting

  • Capacity building

The Sustainable Development Plan (SDP) identified Brokenhead Ojibway Nation’s (BON’s) land use planning and resource management vision, goals and objectives to integrate environmental management and protection with planning regulations, policies and guidelines. As in all plans, the SDP was designed to be a “flexible” and “adaptable” tool for land management, with success dependent on monitoring, reviewing, and updating the plan on a prescribed cycle (e.g. every four years) or as Community needs evolve.

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The SDP  is intended as a working tool for the BON Lands and Resources Department personnel to assess and avoid, or mitigate adverse impacts to the environment and health and safety of BON Community Members. Further, the environmental management  component has been designed to accommodate all BON owned lands regardless of location and types of proposed developments (e.g. housing, servicing expansion, resource extraction, etc.).

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The plan outlined environmental and planning requirements for future land laws to be developed based on the following:

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  • Air and Water;

  • Lands and Natural Resources;

  • Areas of Traditional / Cultural pursuits; and

  • Health and Safety.

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The requirements were matched with certain types of activities and natural phenomena (e.g. developments, floods / fires, and surrounding land use) to develop a work flow process for environmental planning to be implemented as part of the Lands and Resources Department daily operations.

CAPACITY BUILDING

Brokenhead Ojibway Nation, Manitoba
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Training
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The GIS Training Course provided support for:

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  • Self-sufficiency

  • Land use and environmental management

  • Departmental operations and reporting

  • Plan monitoring and review

The on-site course was developed as a basic introduction to GIS and was designed to ensure Brokenhead Ojibway Nation's (BON) Lands and Resources Department personnel receive hands-on understanding of GIS and how it can be applied to BON’s specific needs for land use and environmental management. Essentially, the course was a “how to,” with examples taken from existing GIS data currently residing on BON's GIS computer(s).  On-going support to all personnel was included as part of the training program, for a period of six (6) months after course completion to ensure effective use and understanding have been achieved.

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The course topics were based on our environmental and land use working experience with BON. The basic topics included:

 

  1. Introduction to vector (lines/polygons/points) and raster (imagery) data;

  2. Introduction to GIS basic user interface (e.g. software tools and functions);

  3. Introduction to coordinate systems (i.e. Universal Transverse Mercator [UTM]);

  4. Database and layers;

  5. Adding existing layers and data queries;

  6. Creating layers (e.g. digitizing) and understanding of basic drawing tools,

  7. Importing data (e.g. GPS, coordinate coded photographs);

  8. Creating thematic maps - using categories to colour lines, polygons, and points;

  9. Map layouts and printing. Layouts include scale bar, north arrow, legends, etc.; and

  10. Data management and metadata.

GIS Modelling + Analysis

Friesen Drillers Ltd.
Aquifer Capability and Groundwater Vulnerability Study, Manitoba
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The Analysis and Model provided support for:

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  • Groundwater / environmental monitoring

  • Land use planning and monitoring

  • Groundwater and land use management

  • Development of area policies for sustainable growth

Matters related to the care and proper management of groundwater resources have been a long-term concern for residents in the Rural Municipality (RM) of Springfield. Development plans as early as the 1970s highlight the priority placed on the security and availability of water resources. As the surface water bodies and rivers present within the RM boundaries are not capable of meeting the regional domestic water demands, Springfield relies entirely on the local groundwater resource to meet all of the domestic, commercial and industrial water needs. As part of the effort to ensure sustainable, clean and safe drinking water for the RM and surrounding municipalities, the Springfield Water & Waste Department requested proposals to undertake a study on groundwater vulnerability and capability of local aquifers.

 

Working with the project lead,  Friesen Drillers Inc., we supported the analysis and development of the model and production of GIS layers and maps that delineate the extent of various aquifers, chemical and other parameters, and characterize groundwater vulnerability within the RM. 

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The modelling was completed in both raster (i.e. images) and vector (points, lines, and polygons) GIS applications that incorporated parameters of variable importance in relation to groundwater vulnerability. This study produced  a suite of aquifer maps, groundwater vulnerability maps and water quality maps for the RM that were developed from review of information and​ GIS overlay analysis using a modified DRASTIC* method based on scoring and weighting layers, and then reclassified into Low, Moderate, and High classes for vulnerability. The parameters  used in the GIS analysis were as follows:

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  • Depth to bedrock​,

  • Surficial geology,

  • Fresh/Salt Water Parameter, and

  • Flowing Groundwater.

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* DRASTIC = Developed by the US Environmental Protections Agency - circa 1985

ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT

Black River Development Corporation
Construction Environmental
Management Plan, Manitoba
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The CEMP PROVIDED for:

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  • Contract approval to proceed with construction activities

  • Construction and post-construction mitigation and monitoring plan

The Construction Environmental Management Plan (CEMP) was developed  to fulfill regulatory approvals for construction activities associated with a transmission tower assembly site. The construction activities included assembling 141 tower structures, each being 28 metres (92 feet) in length. The assembled structures were stored on a pre-determined site until installed along the transmission corridor . The tower assembly component was part of a larger project associated with the Lake Winnipeg East System Improvement Transmission Project (LWESI).

 

The CEMP was a working document for on-site inspection, monitoring and implementation of mitigation / protection measures related to environmental matters during construction activities, and was intended to address environmental protection and mitigation requirements.

 

The environmental components addressed in the CEMP included:

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  • Existing baseline conditions of assembly area;

  • Construction activities layout;

  • Roles and Responsibilities; and

  • Project specific mitigation / protection measures included:

    • sediment / erosion control,

    • fuel and hazardous waste handling,

    • emergency response,

    • waste /  recycling,

    • General operations - noise / odours / dust suppression

NEGOTIATION

Hydro-Electric Flooding
Technical Support for First Nations,
Manitoba, Ontario
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The TECHNICAL ADVICE provided support for:

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  • Settlement agreements

  • Land use planning and monitoring

  • Resource management area agreements with provincial government

  • Partnerships with project proponents

Team member providing technical advice to lead negotiators  and associated legal counsel for negotiations related to flooding of First Nation Reserve Lands from existing and proposed hydro-electric projects in Manitoba and Ontario, Canada. Technical support tasks include:

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  • Engagement sessions to select and visit potential compensation lands;

  • Reviews and recommendations on economic and Traditional Use for land selections by community members;

  • Reviews of surveys and elevations to assess water storage and encroachment on Reserves with focus on potential development and shoreline impacts;

  • Developing off-setting programs and resource management area planning strategies;

  • Identifying compensation from loss of use and identifying resource opportunities, and mitigation strategies;

  • Cemetery reconsecration surveys;

  • Mercury reviews and studies on fish, water, and sediment; and

  • Shoreline debris clean-up and monitoring programs.

DEVELOPMENT

Brokenhead Ojibway Nation
Treaty Land Entitlement
(TLE) Selections, Manitoba
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INTENDED outcomes of the work:

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  • Agreements and initial commercial developments

  • Revenue source - taxation, leases, land laws

  • Increased departmental operations and maintenance budgets

  • Development of policies for sustainable growth

Team member providing technical support and advice to Brokenhead Ojibway Nation (BON) on planning future developments on their TLE Lands by identifying requirements for lands transfer to Reserve, development opportunities and developing initial design concepts for potential commercial, industrial, residential, and health / education facilities. The team approach focused on:

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  • Understanding BON existing and future Community and economic needs, taking into account the Provincial Trunk Highway #59 Interchange Project and proposed Wenzel Street Realignment in the area;

  • Providing planning related input and support on potential developments, existing conditions and environmental, survey retracements, third party interests, and Additions to Reserve (ATR) process;

  • Meetings with potential developers to identify requirements and associated schedules;

  • Development of site options matrix for potential siting of commercial and industrial options;

  • Drafting terms of Municipal Services Development Agreement with BON Legal Support  and reviewed by Fiscal Realities Economists Ltd.

SITE SUITABILITY

Transmission Line Routing
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GIS analysis using multi-criteria evaluation to find a preliminary route (and Right-of-Way) having the least potential environmental / land use impacts. The following summary highlights the overall scope, including:

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  • Review of baseline environmental and land use spatial information;

  • GIS overlay of scored and weighted spatial information - classified from low to high impacts;

  • Suitability mapping using friction and least-cost pathway analyses in GIS; and

  • Development of maps displaying shortest routing and avoidance of potentially high impact areas.

Wind Farms
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GIS analysis using multi-criteria evaluation of 13 locations to find preferred siting options. The objective of the study was to assess the general suitability of each site through review of publicly available environmental, land use, socio-economic and engineering related information.  The purpose of the assessment was to rank each site according to various criteria associated with potential development suitability. 

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INTENDED outcomes of SITE SUITABILITY ANALYSIS:

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  • Decision-making support for best siting options

  • Understanding regulatory requirements for a particular project

  • Identification of constraints and areas of relative suitability (i.e. from low to high), as well as information gaps

  • Protection of important habitats

Community Planning
Land Use Planning
Environmental Planning
Capacity Building
GIS Modelling + Analysis
Environmental Management
Negotiation
Site Suitability
Development
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