Tribes toss wrench into projects

Oil and gas projects across a wide swath of northern Alberta have been stalled as a coalition of three Cree tribes challenges the constitutional right of the Alberta government to approve exploration and development programs.

The Indians have launched a court challenge, demanding contracts, jobs and cash for access to what they regard as “traditional” lands. They have presented companies with an “impacts benefit agreement” that sets out a fee schedule of C$3,000 per well site, C$150 per 2.5 acres for seismic activity, C$2,000 per 2.5 acres for pipeline and C$1,750 per 2.5 acres of leased land for major installations.

Industry sources say some companies have bowed to the pressure to avoid disrupting their programs; many others have pulled out of the region entirely.

Alberta Premier Ralph Klein and Charlie Fischer, president of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, said they hope to achieve a negotiated rather than a court-imposed settlement.

But Cree chief Paddy Noskey said Indians in the region are no longer prepared to “watch our resources extracted” without prior consultation and some economic benefits.