Socio-economic impact assessment

Socio-economic impact assessment

• Socio-economic setting

– Kitikmeot Region of Nunavut

– affected parties included individuals, families, communities, Nunavut government, federal government

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Approach

– Mitigation-by-design

• projects come with employment and business opportunities

• employment comes with benefits

• mitigation-by-design is the first line of mitigation

– Consultation with community representatives and regulators

• 5 Kitikmeot communities + Iqaluit and Ottawa

– KIA, hunters and trappers, community leaders, nurses, RCMP, wellness centre coordinators, elders, government regulators, teachers

Socio-economic findings and conclusions

– Review of the outcome of previous assessments

– Shared research reports

– Confirmation of findings, conclusions and proposed mitigation

• 5 Kitikmeot communities + Iqaluit and Ottawa

– KIA, community leaders, wellness centre coordinators, government regulators

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Data: Economic analysis

– metal price information comes from banking institutions; experts that track future metal prices

• mid-point = historic lows and current prices and projections

– only current dollars used in the report– primary sources of information

• Stats Canada - community profiles, Aboriginal Peoples Survey, Final Demand Tables for Nunavut for the I/O calculations, Stats Canada Financial Management Statistics, CANSIM, Table 385-000, statistics generated by the Labour Division of Stats Canada

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Data

– Zinifex completed its assessment based on information available until September 2006

• prior to final hearings, Zinifex will consider current data and redo some of the analysis

– acknowledge the need to correct for referencing

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Issues and outcomes

– Employment (skills and competition)

• 290 jobs during operations

– job exposure positions

– full-time positions

– part-time / temporary positions

• limited skills pool in the Kitikmeot - only 20% of positions filled by Kitikmeot residents at beginning

– skills survey; % Gr. 10 completion; job competition

– equivalency testing / criteria to consider hiring of people with experience but not formal training

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Issues and outcomes

– Education and Training (skills and education)

• mentoring programs to advance Kitikmeot employees

– more Kitikmeot residents with semi-skilled and managerial experience

• apprenticeship positions

• scholarships

– more high school graduates

• partner with GN on training programs aka Miramar

[objective is to have 43% of the employees from the Kitikmeot]

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Issues con’t

– Business opportunities (contracting and entrepreneurship)

• preferential contracting for Inuit firms

• diversification

• other employment opportunities not at the mine site

• early notification of contracting opportunities

– Community Economic Development

• opportunities for youth

• balance between wage and traditional economies

• meet community aspirations for improved economic conditions based on plans available in 2005 and 2006

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Issues con’t

– Infrastructure

• new infrastructure in the Kitikmeot creating opportunity

• limited use (if at all) of community resupply infrastructure

– Royalties, rents and taxes

• financial benefits for the KIA, NTI, GN and federal government

– Social Issues

• drug and alcohol abuse potential managed with counselling

• information on STIs and condoms will be available at the work site

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Issues con’t

– Community Services

• pressure on Wellness Centres potentially increase but employees will be encouraged to use EAP

– contractors will be asked to provide employee assistance programs for contractor employees

• loss of employees to mine jobs expected; individual choice

– Zinifex providing work experience

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Issues con’t

– Institutional Capacity

• competition for professional labour

• demand for programming especially local training and education

– Zinifex expects to partner with GN on training opportunities

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Issues con’t

– Renewable Resource Use

• participation in traditional activities expected to continue, but pattern of participation will change

– Cultural Sustainability• access to wages may increase ability to hunt and facilitate

access to country food

• Inuit languages not affected by the Project

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Mitigation

– three tier approach• Zinifex alone to mitigate impacts to the point of not

adverse– designed to adequately mitigate for impacts

• Zinifex + partner to enhance benefits beyond Zinifex alone

– proposed to enhance mitigation already proposed by Zinifex

• Third party (primarily government) to enhance measures even further

• NB. The IIBA was considered a means by which to ensure that mitigation measures are implemented. It was not considered mitigation

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Monitoring

– preliminary monitoring plan proposes based on findings

– agrees that input and cooperation of a variety of parties is needed to develop an effective monitoring program

Socio-economic findings and conclusions• Monitoring

– use new data from Stats Canada as the base for monitoring programs

– Human Development approach• develop a more holistic picture of changes

happening in the Kitikmeot– have and have not– disposable income– drug and alcohol concerns– gender