additions to reserve 101 links to learning - bc may 4, 2021
TRANSCRIPT
Additions to Reserve 101Links to Learning - BCMay 4, 2021
Theresa MarionProgram and Project Support Unit (ATRs)Lands and Economic DevelopmentIndigenous Services CanadaVancouver, British Columbia
Overview of Today’s Presentation
1. What is an Addition to Reserve (ATR)2. Categories of ATR3. Types of land tenure4. Major areas & issues that need to be
addressed for an ATR5. Four phases of an ATR & timelines6. Other considerations
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1. What is an Addition to Reserve (ATR)
• An Addition to Reserve is a parcel of land:– added to the existing reserve land of a First
Nation or – that creates a new reserve.
• Land can be added adjacent to the existing reserve land (contiguous) or separated from the existing reserve land (non-contiguous).
• An Addition to reserve can be added in rural or urban settings.
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2. Categories of ATR
• Legal Obligation and agreements: where there is a legal obligation or a legal commitment by the Government of Canada to contemplate reserve creation.
• Community Addition: where a First Nation with an existing reserve needs additional reserve land for purposes such as to accommodate community growth or to use/protect culturally significant sites.
• Tribunal Decision: where a First Nation seeks to acquire land with compensation awarded by the Specific Claims Tribunal.
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3. Types of Land Tenure• Provincial Crown Land• Federal Crown Land• Fee simple land, where title has been raised. Can already be held by
a Band Corporation, or there can be an agreement of purchase and sale with the current land holder.
• Roads: these can be complex, depending on whether they are municipal, provincial, or federal roads. Research needs to be done.
Note: Immediately before an ATR submission is sent to the Minister for approval, the land will be transferred to Canada (if fee simple), or Canada will accept the transfer of administration and control (if it’s Provincial Crown Land).
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4. Major Issues to be Addressed
a) Survey of landb) Provincial and municipal notificationc) Service agreements, if needed (water, sewer,
fire protection, waste disposal)d) Aboriginal consultation – Duty to Consulte) Environmentalf) Third party interests, or encumbrances
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4. Major Issues to be Addressed (cont’d)
a) Survey of landLands need to be surveyed to CLSR (Canada Lands Surveys Records) standards.
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4. Major Issues to be Addressed (cont’d)
b) Provincial and municipal notificationNotifications are sent to the Province and municipal government, or regional district, if the land is not within a municipality (see notes below for further information). The municipality or regional district do not have a veto, but we listen to their concerns. If the land is within one municipality, and contiguous with the boundary of another municipality, we may send a notification to the adjacent municipality.Note, we no longer require that lands be formally removed from the ALR (Agricultural Land Reserve) prior to being added to reserve.
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4. Major Issues to be Addressed (cont’d)
c) Service agreements, if needed (water, sewer, fire protection, waste disposal)
If there is planned development of the lands, service agreements must be negotiated with the municipality or other service providers (i.e. Hydro). Usually, a service agreement must be in place
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4. Major Issues to be Addressed (cont’d)
d) Aboriginal consultation – Duty to ConsultWe ask, after you send the application, that you consult with neighbouring First Nations, so that their first notification of the addition to reserve comes from you, and not from Canada.The duty to consult is Canada's obligation, not the obligation of the First Nation seeking to add land to reserve. Canada sends consultation letters to potentially-affected First Nations, and gives them 90 days to respond. We look at what their asserted rights and/or title are to the lands, and ask that they provide documentation of this, which we evaluate.
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4. Major Issues to be Addressed (cont’d)
e) EnvironmentalEnvironmental: lands only need to be remediated to the level commensurate with the intended use of the lands. The four CCME (Canadian Council on Ministers of the Environment) categories which can be found here http://st-ts.ccme.ca/en/index.html?chems=all&chapters=4&pdf=1
are:i. agricultural (highest standard)ii. residential/parklandiii.commercialiv.industrial
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4. Major Issues to be Addressed (cont’d)
f) Third party interests, or encumbrancesAny interest on the existing land must either be cancelled, or replacement interests negotiated and signed, before the lands can be added to reserve.Examples are easements (usually for roads and/or utilities), leases (see “Other Considerations” about pre-reserve designations), permits (which can be negotiated and implemented before the lands are added to reserve).If your First Nation is operational under FNLM (First Nations Land Management) you will negotiate and sign replacement interests.
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5. Four Phases of an ATR
1. Initiation, ATR application from FN2. Assessment & review of application. Letter of
Support issued3. Proposal completion, bulk of work is done.
This is what takes the most time4. Approval of ATR by Ministerial Order.
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6. Other Considerations
• If your First Nation has more than one ATR proposal, you must prioritize which one you would like ISC to work on. At this time, ISC capacity only allows for one ATR per FN.
• Pre-reserve designation is now allowed, meaning if you want to add lands with an existing lease operation, you can do the designation before the ATR.
• If your FN is FNLM operational, you can negotiate your own replacement interests.
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ISC Policy & Backgroundaandc.gc.ca/atr
What is an Addition to Reserve? How is an Addition to Reserve completed? Engagement on Addition to Reserve/Reserve
Creation policy New Addition to Reserve/Reserve Creation Policy
Directive 2016 List of completed additions to reserve New legislation has come into force. Find out more
about the Addition of Lands to Reserves and Reserve Creation Act 2019 (“ALRRCA”)
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Document Collection tinyurl.com/addition-to-reserve
• ALRRCA and FNLMA Letter of Introduction to Chiefs and Leaders (PDF, December 2019)
• ALRRCA Qs and As for First Nations (PDF)• Final Version - ALRRCA and FNLMA Detailed Legislative Comparisons Side-by-side
(PDF)• Additions of Lands to Reserves and Reserve Creation Act (ALRRCA). (PDF, Effective
August 27, 2019)• ATR Application Form (Word)• ATR Milestones, Key Activities, Progress Chart (Excel)• ATR Overview L2L Dec 2017 (PDF, BC Links To Learning Presentation with statistics
and facts about BC)• ATR Policy booklet (PDF, dated December 29, 2017)• ATR work plan (Word)• First Nations Land Management Act (PDF, last amended July 15, 2019, current to
January 8, 2020).• Sample Completed ATR Application (Squirrel Lake First Nation) (PDF)
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NALMAhttps://nalma.ca/about
• National Aboriginal Land Managers Association (NALMA)– 3-day workshop on the Additions to Reserves and Reserve
Creation Toolkit. Provides participants with the basic concepts of ATRs, considerations before undertaking an ATR, and leads participants through the four phases of the ATR process
– - Membership in BCALM, the BC branch of NALMA is $300 per year, per FN, and includes training, and travel sponsorship for up to $2,500 per person per FN. https://nalma.ca/associations/bcalm
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Contact
General questions re ATRs:[email protected]
Today’s presenter: Theresa [email protected] (work cell)
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