The B.C. government has agreed to work with the Tla’amin First Nation to try to recover a former village site in Powell River, long since occupied by a pulp mill.
The Tla’amin have already signed a treaty, which is in the implementation stage. The possibility of returning the land occupied by a pulp mill didn’t even become an option until Paper Excellence announced it was shutting down the mill in 2021.
The pulp mill site is on an historic Tla’amin village site – which they call tiskwat and which they would like to get back. The Tla’amin were relocated from the village site 145 years ago.
Today, the B.C. government announced it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Tla’amin to try to restore the site to the First Nation.
"This is a once-in-150-year opportunity for Tla'amin to have some level of reconciliation at tiskwat,” Tla'amin Chief John Hackett said in a press release.
“We need to responsibly manage the decaying infrastructure and create new opportunities so that future generations are not saddled with a toxic legacy. Tiskwat is our homeland and this MOU is a powerful symbol of the province's commitment to work differently with Tla'amin and to ensure the greatest degree of local benefit."
The MOU signed today makes no guarantees but commits the government to work towards fulfilling certain aspirations of the Tla’amin, including “repossession.”
The B.C. government doesn’t own the site – Paper Excellence does. The company has the land up for sale.
One of the stated goals of the MOU is “Tla’amin’s long-term objectives for the repossession of tiskwat.”
The MOU is not legally binding on either the part of the province or the Tla’amin.
Should the B.C. government end up buying the land and then transferring it to the Tla’amin, that could raise concerns about losing an important piece of industrial land in Powell River.
The City of Powell River has been hoping Paper Excellence can find a buyer and that the site will be used for some new industry.
Powell River Mayor Ron Woznow told BIV News that he has been given assurances by Murray Rankin, minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation, that, should the land end up being transferred to the Tla’amin, it would not be as treaty land, but fee simple, which means the industrial zoning would likely be retained.
“Minister Rankin has confirmed that if there’s any change in ownership that the taxation will not be impacted,” Woznow said.
“We look forward to somebody owning that property that can provide a basis for good industry and employment and right now we can’t make a comment on whether this is good, bad or indifferent.”
"The Tla'amin people are deeply connected to this land, but they were pushed out of their village to make room for industry without having a say in the development of the site and without reaping any economic benefits," said Premier David Eby.
"Through this agreement, we are committing to righting past wrongs and working together to create environmental and economic benefits for the Tla'amin Nation, the surrounding community and the whole province."
Paper Excellence issued a statement congratulating the Tla'amin and B.C. government for reaching an agreement on the MOU.
"The company recognizes the importance of tiskwat to the Tla’amin Nation as a former village site and site of historical and contemporary social, cultural, and economic significance," the company said.
