IQALUIT, Nunavut — A Nunavut court has issued an injunction to stop seismic testing in a proposed Arctic national marine park.
The tests, which were set to begin Monday in Lancaster Sound off the north coast of Baffin Island, have infuriated local Inuit. They argue local communities weren’t adequately consulted before the tests were planned.
The injunction, requested on Thursday by the Qikiqtani Inuit Association, states that the potential for significant harm that the testing posed to the Inuit is greater than the losses that would be incurred if the injunction was granted and the testing wasn’t completed as scheduled.
The federal government and the Nunavut government both claim they made consultations and followed an approval process laid out in the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement.
Federal officials, including Environment Minister Jim Prentice, have downplayed the environmental risks of the seismic tests and emphasized the government’s commitment to protecting the park.
But association president Okalik Eegeesiak argues sound waves from the testing will harm area wildlife, which includes walrus, polar bears and several kinds of whales.
“I’m elated. We’re elated. We feel very much vindicated for the injunction. So we’re very happy right now,” Eegeesiak said by phone from Ottawa, where she is attending a conference on climate change.
A statement from the federal government Sunday said the injunction would not affect any other testing that is currently underway in the North.
“Natural Resources Canada remains committed to the goal of its Geo-mapping program which is to increase our knowledge of the geology of the North. This scientific information will also be valuable in establishing a proposed marine conservation area in Lancaster Sound,” the release stated.
The department had made an agreement with the German Federal Institute of Geoscience to carry out geological seismic testing over approximately 65 days.
The research plans for Lancaster Sound, Jones Sound and North Baffin Bay got a green light from the Nunavut’s environmental regulator earlier this year, but the regulator required consultations in the affected communities to provide an additional opportunity to address public concerns.
Eegeesiak argues the community concerns about potential damage to marine life were never addressed, and she rejects arguments from the group doing the testing that it will be less intense because it isn’t intended to hunt for oil or gas.
“We’re really concerned that the seismic testing will affect migration patterns. There’s a chance that the animals won’t come back after the testing,” Eegeesiak said.
The injunction states that while the federal government argues it followed its duty to consult with Inuit by abiding by the regulatory process laid out in the land claims agreement, it says the law is unclear about whether that’s actually adequate consultation.
Of concern in this case, the court states, is the Inuit right to harvest marine mammals that are an important part of their diet.
“The Inuit right which is at stake is of high significance. This suggests a significant level of consultation and accommodation is required,” the injunction states.
Heinrich Miller of the Alfred Wegener Institute, the German group that was to conduct the research, has said the tests concern distant geologic history and have no connection to looking for oil and gas deposits.
The institute’s ship Polarstern had been sailing toward Lancaster Sound off the north coast of Baffin Island with permits to conduct the seismic tests on the sea floor.
Miller expressed frustration last week at the apparent miscommunication between the federal and provincial governments and the local Inuit.