Nunavut Waters and Nunavut Surface Rights Tribunal Act (S.C. 2002, c. 10)

DIVISION 1Nunavut Water Board

Establishment and Organization of Board

Marginal note:Establishment of Board

• 14 (1) There is hereby established the Nunavut Water Board, the members of which are to be appointed by the Minister.

• Marginal note:Number of members

  (2) Subject to sections 16 and 17, the Board consists of nine members, including the Chairperson.

• Marginal note:Proportions

  (3) The following rules apply to the appointment of members, other than the Chairperson:

  • (a) one half of the members shall be appointed on the nomination of the designated Inuit organization; and

  • (b) one quarter of the members shall be appointed on the nomination of

    • (i) the territorial minister responsible for renewable resources, and

    • (ii) the territorial minister or ministers designated, by an instrument of the Executive Council of Nunavut, for the purposes of this paragraph.

• Marginal note:Appointment of Chairperson

  (4) The Chairperson shall be appointed after consultation with the other members.

Marginal note:Term of office

• 15 (1) A member of the Board shall be appointed to hold office for a term of three years.

• Marginal note:Acting after expiry of term

  (2) If the term of a member expires before the member has made a decision in a matter for which a public hearing is held, the member may, with the authorization of the Chairperson, continue to act as a member only in relation to that matter until the hearing is concluded and a decision is made. The office of the member is deemed to be vacant as soon as the term expires for the purpose of the appointment of a replacement.

Marginal note:Additional members

16 Additional members may be appointed to the Board for the performance of a specified purpose, or for a term of less than three years, in the manner and the proportions provided by subsection 14(3).

Marginal note:Inuit of northern Quebec

• 17 (1) During any period preceding the ratification by the parties of an agreement to settle the offshore land claims of the Inuit of northern Quebec, the Minister shall appoint, on the nomination of Makivik, a number of substitute members of the Board equal to one-half the number appointed on the nomination of the designated Inuit organization.

• Marginal note:Role of substitute members

  (2) In respect of licensing decisions of the Board that apply to any area of equal use and occupancy described in Schedule 40-1 to the Agreement, the substitute members shall act in the place of such members appointed on the nomination of the designated Inuit organization as are identified by the Minister, after consultation with that organization, at the time of the appointment of the substitute members.

• Marginal note:Term

  (3) Subject to subsection 15(2), the term of a substitute member is three years, except that the term of that member expires on the ratification referred to in subsection (1).

• Marginal note:Status of substitute members

  (4) Substitute members shall not be considered to be members, except in respect of decisions referred to in subsection (2).

Marginal note:Oath of office

18 Before taking up their duties, members of the Board shall take and subscribe the oath of office set out in Schedule 2 before a person authorized by law to administer oaths.

Marginal note:Removal

19 Any member of the Board may be removed for cause, but before a member who was nominated by the designated Inuit organization, Makivik or the territorial ministers is removed, the Minister shall consult the designated Inuit organization, Makivik or the territorial ministers, as the case may be.

Marginal note:Reappointment

20 A member is eligible to be reappointed to the Board in the same or another capacity.

Marginal note:Vacancies

21 Where the office of a member becomes vacant, the Minister shall, without delay, appoint a new member to that office, and if the vacancy occurs during the term of a member, a replacement shall be appointed only for the remainder of that term.

Marginal note:Duties of Chairperson

22 The Chairperson is the chief executive officer of the Board and has such powers, duties and functions as are prescribed by the rules or by-laws of the Board.

Marginal note:Conflict of interest

• 23 (1) No member of the Board may participate in a decision on a matter in which that member has a material conflict of interest.

• Marginal note:Status of Inuk or interest in land

  (2) A member is not placed in a material conflict of interest merely because the member has the status under the Agreement of an Inuk or has an interest in land in Nunavut.

Marginal note:Remuneration and expenses

• 24 (1) The members of the Board shall receive fair remuneration, as determined by the Minister, for the performance of their duties and shall be paid such travel and living expenses incurred while absent from their ordinary place of residence in the course of performing their duties as are consistent with Treasury Board directives for public servants.

• Marginal note:Workers’ compensation

  (2) A member is deemed to be an employee for the purposes of the Government Employees Compensation Act and to be employed in the public service of Canada for the purposes of any regulations made under section 9 of the Aeronautics Act.

Languages

Marginal note:Language of business

• 25 (1) The Board shall conduct its business in both of the official languages of Canada in accordance with the Official Languages Act and any directives of the Minister and, on request by a member, in Inuktitut.

• Marginal note:Public hearings

  (2) The Board shall conduct public hearings in both of the official languages of Canada in accordance with the Official Languages Act and any directives of the Minister and, on request by a member, an applicant or an intervenor, in Inuktitut.

• Marginal note:Translation or interpretation

  (3) Nothing in subsection (1) or (2) shall be construed to prevent the use of translation or interpretation services where a member is otherwise unable to conduct business in Inuktitut or in either official language.

• Marginal note:Witnesses

  (4) The Board has, in any proceedings before it, the duty to ensure that any person giving evidence before it may be heard in Inuktitut or in either official language, and that in being so heard the person will not be placed at a disadvantage by not being heard in another of those languages.

Head Office and Meetings

Marginal note:Head office

26 The head office of the Board shall be at Gjoa Haven or at such other place in Nunavut as the Governor in Council may designate.

Marginal note:Business meetings

• 27 (1) The Board shall ordinarily hold its meetings in Nunavut.

• Marginal note:Participation by telephone

  (2) Subject to the rules and by-laws of the Board, any member may participate in a business meeting by means of telephone or other communications facilities that are likely to enable all persons participating in the meeting to hear each other, and a member so participating is deemed for all purposes of this Part to be present at that meeting.

Status and General Powers

Marginal note:Status

• 28 (1) The Board is an institution of public government but is not an agent of Her Majesty.

• Marginal note:Property and contracts

  (2) The Board may, for the purposes of conducting its business,

  • (a) acquire property in its own name and dispose of the property; and

  • (b) enter into contracts in its own name.

• Marginal note:Legal proceedings

  (3) Actions, suits or other legal proceedings in respect of any right or obligation acquired or incurred by the Board may be brought or taken by or against the Board in its name in any court that would have jurisdiction if the Board were a corporation.

Marginal note:Panels

• 29 (1) The Board may establish panels of the Board and delegate any of its powers, duties and functions to them.

• Marginal note:Composition

  (2) Every panel shall consist of equal numbers of members appointed to the Board on the nomination of the designated Inuit organization or Makivik, as the case may be, and other members.

Marginal note:Staff

30 The Board may employ such officers and employees and engage the services of such agents, advisers and experts as are necessary for the proper conduct of its business, and may fix the terms and conditions of their employment or engagement and pay their remuneration.

Marginal note:Indemnification of Board members and employees

31 The members and employees of the Board shall be indemnified by the Board against all damages awarded against them, any settlement paid by them with the approval of the Minister and all expenses reasonably incurred by them, in respect of any claim arising out of their functions as members or employees, if those functions were carried out honestly and in good faith with a view to the best interests of the Board.

Financial Provisions

Marginal note:Annual budget

• 32 (1) The Board shall annually submit a budget for the following fiscal year to the Minister for consideration.

• Marginal note:Accounts

  (2) The Board shall maintain books of account and records in relation to them in accordance with accounting principles recommended by the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada or its successor.

• Marginal note:Consolidated financial statements

  (3) The Board shall, within such time after the end of each fiscal year as the Minister specifies, prepare consolidated financial statements in respect of that fiscal year in accordance with the accounting principles referred to in subsection (2), and shall include in the consolidated financial statements any information or statements that are required in support of them.

• Marginal note:Audit

  (4) The accounts, financial statements and financial transactions of the Board shall be audited annually by the auditor of the Board and, where the Minister requests, the Auditor General of Canada. The auditor and, where applicable, the Auditor General of Canada shall make a report of the audit to the Board and the Minister.

Rules and By-laws

Marginal note:Powers of Board

• 33 (1) The Board may make rules and by-laws respecting the conduct and management of its business.

• Marginal note:Principles to be applied

  (2) The Board shall apply the following principles when making rules or by-laws for the conduct of public hearings:

  • (a) the admission of evidence that would not normally be admissible under strict rules of evidence shall be allowed, and appropriate weight shall be given to such evidence;

  • (b) due regard and weight shall be given to Inuit culture, customs and knowledge; and

  • (c) procedural fairness shall be observed.

• Marginal note:Non-application of Statutory Instruments Act

  (3) Sections 3, 5 and 11 of the Statutory Instruments Act do not apply in respect of rules and by-laws of the Board.

Marginal note:Pre-publication

• 34 (1) The Board shall give notice at least sixty days in advance of making any rule or by-law about practice and procedure for applications and hearings before it by

  • (a) publishing the proposed rule or by-law in a newspaper or other periodical that, in the opinion of the Board, has a large circulation in Nunavut; and

  • (b) sending a copy of the proposed rule or by-law to the council of each municipality in Nunavut.

• Marginal note:Representations invited

  (2) The notice referred to in subsection (1) shall include an invitation to interested persons to make representations in writing to the Board about the proposed rule or by-law within sixty days after publication of the notice.

• Marginal note:Response to representations

  (3) The Board may not make the rule or by-law until after it has responded to any representations made within the time limit referred to in subsection (2).

• Marginal note:Exception

  (4) Once a notice is published under subsection (1), no further notice is required to be published about any amendment to the proposed rule or by-law that results from representations made by interested persons.

• Marginal note:Publication

  (5) As soon as possible after the rule or by-law has been made, the Board shall

  • (a) publish it in a newspaper or other periodical that, in the opinion of the Board, has a large circulation in Nunavut; and

  • (b) publish a notice in the Canada Gazette that the rule or by-law has been made, indicating the newspaper or periodical in which it has been published.

Objects of Board and Its Relationship with Other Bodies

Marginal note:Objects

35 The objects of the Board are to provide for the conservation and utilization of waters in Nunavut, except in a national park, in a manner that will provide the optimum benefit from those waters for the residents of Nunavut in particular and Canadians in general.

Marginal note:Land use plans

• 36 (1) The Board shall contribute fully to the development of land use plans so far as they concern waters in Nunavut, by providing recommendations to the Nunavut Planning Commission.

• Marginal note:Review by Nunavut Planning Commission

  (2) In order to avoid unnecessary duplication and to ensure that projects are dealt with in a timely manner, the Board shall cooperate and coordinate its consideration of applications with the Nunavut Planning Commission’s review of projects under sections 76 to 85 of the Nunavut Planning and Project Assessment Act for conformity with any applicable land use plans approved under subsection 55(1) of that Act.

Marginal note:Screening and review of projects

• 37 (1) In order to avoid unnecessary duplication and to ensure that projects are dealt with in a timely manner, the Board shall cooperate and coordinate its consideration of applications with the Nunavut Impact Review Board or any federal environmental assessment panel or joint panel established under subsection 115(1) or paragraph 160(1)(a) or (b) of the Nunavut Planning and Project Assessment Act in relation to the screening of projects by that Board and the review of projects by that Board or panel.

• Marginal note:Joint hearings

  (2) The Board may, in lieu of conducting a separate public hearing in respect of a licence in connection with a project for which a public hearing is to be held by the Nunavut Impact Review Board or the panel referred to in subsection (1), as the case may be, conduct, in relation to the project, a joint hearing with that Board or panel or participate in the hearing of that Board or panel.