The Anishinaabe Nation in Treaty #3 and Nuclear Waste Management Organization renew relationship agreement

On October 6, 2022, Grand Council Treaty #3 (GTC3) and the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) signed a $5.9 million two-year relationship agreement to provide capacity for:

1. Language initiatives
2. Outreach and education relating to Nuclear 101 Guidebook
3. The Treaty #3 Stewardship Officer program
4. Youth scholarships and internships
5. Intergenerational knowledge transfer
6. Gathering all voices of the nation
7. Ceremonial and spiritual protocols
8. Legal and sector expertise
9. The development of a Treaty #3 Project Assessment regulatory regime as a planning tool to implement Manito Aki Inakonigaawin (the Great Earth Law of the Anishinaabe Nation in Treaty #3) and exercise Anishinaabe jurisdiction.

Both parties acknowledge the renewed agreement does not consent or imply consent to the NWMO site selection process or the contemplated Adaptive Phased Management project. The Chiefs in Assembly continue to support the Elders Declaration of 2011, opposing the storage of nuclear waste in Treaty #3 Territory and the requirement that any resource development in Treaty #3 Territory is to be authorized through the Anishinaabe Nation in Treaty #3 protocols and Manito Aki Inakonigaawin.

Kennedy A. Bear Robe, partner at Gowling WLG, advised the Government of the Anishinaabe Nation in Treaty #3 on this agreement. Kennedy is honoured to have acted for GCT3 in this matter.