Northern Projects Management Office Initiative Evaluation (2015-16): Management Response and Action Plan

1. Implement more formalized relationships and agreements.
   Several stakeholders believed that an increased formality to partnerships and collaborations was required to facilitate effective and timely regulatory reviews. Proposed formal agreements that stakeholders suggested included a more formalized governance structure outlined in a partnership framework and standard use of Northern Partnership Agreements with project partners.

Engage territorial counterparts to develop a preferred approach to implementation of MOUs with the Governments of Yukon and NWT.

In consultation with federal regulatory partners, complete the review of templates for northern project agreements.

2. Bridging external partnerships.
   A few stakeholders identified that there was a need for a stronger relationship between the Aboriginal communities and territorial partners. They recommended that NPMO would be well-suited to bridge the relationships, by bringing a representative from the territorial partners to the communities. This would help create formal accountability between the community and the territory.

3. Early and intensive outreach to industry.
   NPMO should engage in outreach through industry events whenever possible and establish a better relationship with the Chamber of Mines. Most stakeholders felt NPMO could play an important role being involved with industry at an earlier stage; some felt as early as the explorations stage, while a few felt NPMO would be useful when proponents were looking at ways to resolve issues related to infrastructure. Another important role for NPMO could be a more deliberate and intensive outreach to new and/or smaller members of industry. Targeting these groups to publicize NPMO’s services would be key in attracting new investors.

Propose regular meetings with the northern Chambers of Mines and the Mining Recorder Offices to stay informed of new exploration proponents and disseminate information on NPMO services; and

Review and revise as required its communication strategies and web presence, while ensuring alignment with government-wide directions, with a focus on improved information on NPMO's responsibilities, services and activities.

4. Early and intensive outreach to Aboriginal groups.
   NPMO should engage in outreach to Aboriginal organization and communities whenever possible and establish MOUs or partnership agreements. By establishing relationships with Aboriginal communities, NPMO can also facilitate the development of the Impact Benefit Agreements (IBAs) and interactions with industry should a community participate in the Community Readiness Initiative (CRI).

5. Greater collaboration with CanNor.
   It was noted that NPMO could be better aligned with CanNor to support programming particularly related to Community Readiness Assessments (CRAs) completed under the Community Readiness Initiative (CRI). Greater integration of complementary tools and services between CanNor and NPMO was recommended, such as using CRA Maps to facilitate the application of CanNor’s relevant programming to communities in need, promoting greater engagement and support for northern communities. Greater collaboration could also mean clearer messages are provided to Aboriginal organizations and proponents as to the specifics of programs and services offered by each, supported by an alignment of internal processes to increase efficiencies in operation

Implementing a common approach to the review of proposals in support of community readiness; and

Creation of a Community Readiness Initiative GC Connex webpage to support the sharing of information and updates across the Agency.

6. Conduct reviews of major projects that did and did not proceed to identify lessons learned.
   NPMO is well positioned to conduct a review of major projects that appeared to be advancing to implementation but withdrew and those that proceeded to identify areas where NPMO and its partners (e.g., federal departments, territorial governments, and regulatory boards) may be able to make improvements to assist proponents of upcoming projects proceed with fewer challenges.

7. Hold a forum for regulatory boards, federal and territorial departments.
   To build relationships among the territorial governments and regulatory boards, a workshop-style forum could be held where participants share best practices and challenges related the regulatory review process.

8. Bring all existing internal databases and tools to a functional level.
   Some internal and federal stakeholders acknowledged that databases and tools intended to be used by NPMO were not completed or not used widely enough to contribute to NPMO’s anticipated outcomes. It was recommended that these databases and tools be completed, updated, and put online for use by NPMO staff and other federal departments.

9. Maximize the use of existing tools.
   The Project Tracker was largely unknown to most interviewees, and of those that had investigated the tool prior to the interview, did not believe that this tool had sufficient information to be useful to them. Potential users of this tool need to be made aware of its existence, and review of the tool to ensure it is meeting the needs of these end users may be helpful in encouraging its uptake and maximizing its usefulness. Reviewing databases for overlap and potential merging is also recommended. Some databases were in need of updating. Merging databases that contain similar or overlapping information would ease the burden on updating.

Review and update its standard operating procedures to outline requirements for regular updates/reviews of its tools and practices.

Establish shared opportunities with the Major Projects Management Office to better integrate project tracking and reporting on the status of major projects.

Create an NPMO GC Connex webpage to support the sharing of information and updates across federal departments.

Train NPMO staff to ensure that the tools such as project tracker are used effectively.

10. Develop a Crown consultation tracker.
    Many federal department representatives expressed confusion about knowing the exact stage of various aspects of the Crown consultation record; for example, a federal department working on a project will conduct their own Crown consultation, but other federal departments working on that same project will not be aware of these consultation activities. Although there is a Crown Consultation table, having a Crown Consultation Database available on a single platform and across all regions would maximize the benefit and use to external stakeholders. Interviewees recommended the development of a Crown consultation tool, similar to the NPMO Project Tracker tool. Such a tool would be used within the Government of Canada’s relevant federal departments to keep track of, and disseminate, Crown consultation information for each project coordinated by NPMO, and would include information from all relevant federal departments.

11. Provide open, public reporting and updates.
    NPMO would better serve stakeholders if they provided newsletters, which could include their mandate, guides to rules and processes to implement mandates, and upcoming or newly implemented changes to regulations or legislation.

12. Provide capacity funding for Aboriginal communities to participate in reviews.
    It was noted that a considerable barrier to Aboriginal communities’ meaningful participation in the Crown consultation process was a lack of expertise to interpret and respond to technical and scientific documents that are a part of the environmental review process. Some interviewees recommended that a capacity or participation fund be implemented, which would provide funding for communities to hire expert consultants on these matters to assist in responding to relevant documents during the Crown consultation and environmental review process. A few stakeholders recommended investigating models and best practices from the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) – NPMO could expand their abilities by creating potential capital investment funds. Capacity or participation funding for Aboriginal communities to participate in Crown consultation could be provided either through NPMO or through the operations branch of CanNor.

13. Complete Community Readiness Initiative (CRI) pilots and conduct review.
    Although significant potential benefits have been anticipated from the CRI, the pilots need to be evaluated to ensure goals have been achieved. If the results of the program review are positive, the CRI should consider any improvements prior to receiving more substantive funding (e.g., the challenges in initiating a CRA at the community level). Several interviewees indicated that CRI is not well-known in the territories and, as such, not as many communities are taking advantage of it as could be. Because this is a new program only in the pilot stage and unknown to most communities, it requires significant time for the communities to recognize the benefits of the program and come together to take advantage of it. Currently, program outcomes have not been fully realized as most of those pilots are still in process.

Continue to work with communities taking part in the Community Readiness Initiative (CRI) pilot to complete their CRI reports.

Conduct an internal review of CRI pilot practices and results achieved to date, and present a report on the findings to the President of CanNor; and

14. Increase staffing allotments for NPMO.
    Many of the shortfalls of NPMO, such as a lack of direct Crown consultation tracking, were attributed to insufficient staff at NPMO, particularly in offices outside of Yellowknife. Staff in these offices were identified as being overburdened and not able to complete all of their tasks, resulting in federal departments taking on some of the workload, such as filling out Crown consultation tables or reminding project coordinators to set up meetings. It was noted that having such a 'lean’ staff contingent meant that the organization was at risk when any one staff member left the organization. Many interviewees recommended that resources for staffing at NPMO be increased. It should be noted that NIRB and the water boards in Nunavut are located in western Nunavut; having an NPMO office in the same area would facilitate increasing efficiencies between the offices and be an advantage to NPMO to fulfill its mandate.

Review its current FTE capacity to ensure alignment of its resources against work volumes and the NPMO salary envelope, as well as ensure that priority positions are strategically identified in CanNor’s staffing plan.

15. 'Brand’ NPMO and publicize the services and tools offered by NPMO to external stakeholders.
    Some interviewees believed that many external stakeholders (project proponents and Aboriginal communities) were not aware of the services offered by NPMO and often confused NPMO with CanNor. Increasing the profile of NPMO may facilitate consultation with industry and more meaningful involvement of Aboriginal communities in the regulatory review process due to improved community readiness. Overall, these early interactions would lead to improved collaboration in the North between Aboriginal communities, the Government of Canada, and industry proponents to facilitate sustainable resource development.

16. Ensure external stakeholders are aware of what NPMO cannot do.
    Conversely to the above recommendation, some Aboriginal and industry interviewees experienced frustration with NPMO, as they were not aware of what NPMO’s role before requesting something that was beyond the mandate of NPMO. NPMO’s role as a coordinator and messenger, rather than a decision-making body, needs to be better communicated to proponents and Aboriginal groups.

17. Earlier initiation of Community Readiness Initiative (CRI).
    NPMO could consider initiating community readiness sooner. Most stakeholders believed earlier implementation of CRI (e.g., at the oil and gas exploration stage) would be beneficial to Aboriginal communities and provide them with more time to learn about the project and navigate government processes. NPMO could also play an ongoing role helping communities understand what kind of opportunities the major project could offer that would be advantageous to them, such as new business opportunities for Aboriginal entrepreneurs. Also, earlier CRI would benefit Industry during the development of Impact Benefit Agreements (IBAs). One stakeholder recommended NPMO consider a "Regional Readiness" approach, particularly since the North is divided into regions with its land claims, and land and water boards.

18. Publicize "lessons learned" from Aboriginal communities’ perspectives.
    NPMO could document a "lessons learned" or best practice record by bringing people from Aboriginal communities to describe their experiences with major resource development. This would be beneficial to other Aboriginal communities and Industry stakeholders to learn about the initial stage of resource development, various Aboriginal rights issues, and related consultation and community engagement issues.