Ontario Place project at risk as Canada ignores engagement requirements with Indigenous Peoples

A release issued by the Haudenosaunee Development Institute (HDI) stated that it believes that the Federal government has failed to meet Indigenous engagement obligations for the Ontario Place project on Toronto’s waterfront.

The release noted that if the Government of Canada fails to fulfill its responsibility to engage and collaborate with Indigenous Peoples, the multi-billion-dollar Ontario Place development project could face significant delays.

“Ontario has acknowledged that the Ontario Place Project will impair, infringe and otherwise interfere with established s.35 treaty rights. As a result, Canada, specifically the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) must fulfill its engagement obligations with the HDI and take steps to justify infringements,” reads the release.

S.35, or Section 35 of Canada’s Constitution Act, protects Aboriginal rights and treaty rights, including harvesting rights. The HDI is concerned with the impact of the proposed Ontario Place development on Lake Ontario and on aquatic life.

The Haudenosaunee Development Institute noted that the DFO issued an authorization letter on June 20, 2024, which approved construction work for Ontario Place to begin. That authorization letter, however, has since been withdrawn after the DFO acknowledged that it was issued unlawfully without meeting Indigenous engagement requirements.

HDI has been issuing repeated requests for a proper authorization letter that upholds the honour of the Crown. The DFO as well as the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, however, have ignored requests for the past two weeks, according to HDI.

HDI says that Lucas Coletti, biologist, triage and planning, who was the signatory of the withdrawn authorization letter, has not responded to phone calls and emails regarding HDI’s request to begin engagement.

“If they are going to ignore our constitutionally protected rights, then we will simply exercise those rights as we are lawfully entitled, and if it stops work, then it stops work. Hopefully, DFO comes to the table in a meaningful way so that we can advance the goals of reconciliation in accordance with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples,” said Todd Williams, monitoring program coordinator with the HDI.

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