The limits to extraction: mining and colonialism in Nunavut

ABSTRACT

This article examines the contemporary mining industry in Nunavut, Canada to determine whether land claims and other negotiated agreements have enabled Inuit to capture wealth produced by extraction. It examines the geographic distribution of wealth produced by Nunavut’s extractive economy and considers several structural limits to economic development through private-sector extraction in Northern Canada. Although the 1993 Nunavut Agreement has allowed Inuit to increase their share of extraction-based wealth, most wealth still accrues to other jurisdictions. The extractive economy therefore remains a colonial economy, because it continues to benefit external interests disproportionately.

RÉSUMÉ

Cet article examine l’industrie minière contemporaine au Nunavut (Canada) afin de déterminer si les revendications territoriales et d’autres accords négociés ont permis aux Inuits de s’approprier une part substantielle des richesses générées par l’extraction. Il examine la répartition géographique de la richesse produite par l’économie extractive du Nunavut et examine plusieurs limites structurelles au développement économique par le biais de l’extraction par le secteur privé dans le Nord du Canada. Bien que l’accord conclu avec le Nunavut en 1993 ait permis aux Inuits d’accroître leur part des richesses tirées de l’extraction, la plus grande partie de la richesse revient encore à d’autres juridictions. L’économie extractive reste donc une économie coloniale, car elle continue de bénéficier de manière disproportionnée à des intérêts extérieurs.

KEYWORDS:

• Extraction
• uneven development
• colonialism
• Indigenous peoples
• Canada

Notes on contributor

Warren Bernauer is a doctoral candidate at York University’s Department of Geography. His research examines the politics of energy extraction in Nunavut. Bernauer has worked as an environmental assessment and planning consultant for several Indigenous and environmental organisations in Nunavut. He currently teaches at the University of Manitoba and University of Winnipeg.

Notes

1 While I use the term “Indigenous” to refer to the original inhabitants of what is now Canada, I follow Canadian legal convention and use the term “Aboriginal” to refer to the unique constitutional and common-law rights possessed by Indigenous peoples.

2 All monetary values are presented in CAD.

3 The distribution of average annual payments was predicted to be: 30 per cent to the Government of Nunavut; 15 per cent to Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated; 5 per cent to the Kivalliq Inuit Association; and the remainder to the federal government (Agnico-Eagle 2016b).

4 Hunters and Trappers Organisations are community organisations in Nunavut. Under the Nunavut Agreement they are legally mandated to manage wildlife and represent the interests of Inuit hunters.