Bill C-88 — Amendments to theMackenzie Valley Resource Management Act (MVRMA)

In 2014, as part of a wider initiative to modernize and streamline northern regulatory regimes, changes were made to the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act (MVRMA).

At the time, a number of Indigenous governments and organizations in the Northwest Territories raised concerns about the planned restructuring of the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board. The Tłįchǫ Government and Sahtu Secretariat Incorporated filed for an injunction with the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories to suspend the related provisions, which was granted in February 2015. A consultation process was officially launched on September 23, 2016 with all relevant parties, including Indigenous governments and organizations in the Northwest Territories, the territorial government, and other stakeholders to discuss a way forward regarding the MVRMA.

Following consultations with territorial Indigenous governments and organizations and the Government of the Northwest Territories, the Government of Canada introduced a bill in the House of Commons in November 2018 to amend the MVRMA to address concerns with the 2014 amendments. Bill C-88, An Act to amend the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act and the Canada Petroleum Resources Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts, was passed by Parliament June 19, 2019.

The Act repeals provisions of the Northwest Territories Devolution Act that would have restructured the four land and water boards in the Mackenzie Valley, instead retaining the current board structure consisting of:

• Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board;
• Gwich'in Land and Water Board;
• Sahtu Land and Water Board; and
• Wek'èezhìi (Tłįchǫ) Land and Water Board.

The Sahtu, Gwich'in and Wek'èezhìi boards will remain as panels of the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board. Jurisdiction for regulation of land and water in unsettled land claim areas of the Mackenzie Valley and for transboundary projects, including the issuance of land use permits and water licences, will also remain with the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board.

The Act also re-introduces provisions unrelated to restructuring that were included in the Northwest Territories Devolution Act but did not come into force following the court injunction. These include provisions related to cost recovery, administrative monetary penalties, and enforcement regimes for environmental impact assessment, consultation regulation-making authorities, and regional studies.

The Government of Canada is committed to work in partnership with Indigenous peoples, provincial and territorial governments, and Canadians to ensure that legislation is clear, fair and appropriate to Northerners and all Canadians.