Traditional land use, cultural considerations and Indigenous rights have to be part of the process from the start.
Diedre Halbot has only been in the position for 4 months but the new Director of Qalipu Environment and Natural Resources is passionate about the job. She is originally from Gillams but has made a career working in First Nations and Inuit communities in Goose Bay and Atlantic Canada. On Qalipu today with Bayfm’s Lenny Benoit, Halbot says environmental assessments are complicated and sometimes it’s hard to know what is going on or how to get involved. She says we have seen the damage that comes with a lack of regulations from the instance in the eighties with the cleanup of the base in Goose Bay and it cost taxpayers a lot of money. Halbot says the CEAA was changed in 2019 to become the Impact Assessment Agency. She says projects are obligated to consult with Indigenous groups right from the start. Halbot says traditional land use, cultural considerations and Indigenous rights have to be part of the process from the start.