Social Responsibility

BUILDING STRONG PARTNERSHIPS

Valard has worked collaboratively with Canada’s Indigenous communities for many decades. Both Valard and Fortis are confident that their collaborative process will provide significant benefits to the communities this project is designed to serve. They look forward to rewarding Wataynikaneyap Power’s* confidence in their ability to safely execute on such an important project.

Our employees are part of the communities in which they work – supporting sustainability, local businesses and causes, as well as showing respect for project-related concerns and acting on them.

Building relationships with diverse communities across the country isn’t just how we operate. It’s who we are.

GUIDING PRINCIPLES

The project is being undertaken using Guiding Principles established by community leadership and are supported by the project partners. The expectations of the communities are that all Wataynikaneyap project work will be carried out consistent with these Guiding Principles:

1

RESPECT

Our people expect that the Wataynikaneyap Power Project will be undertaken in a manner that respects our lands, rights and principles; our way of life on the land and as part of the land; and our land sharing protocols.

2

RESPONSIBILITIES

Our sacred responsibilities given to us by the Creator are to protect the land, which protects us in return. Therefore, the Project shall be built, operated and maintained in a way that minimizes adverse environmental impacts, as follows:

  • ­The Project shall not poison the lands;
  • ­No herbicides shall be used throughout the life of the transmission line to control vegetation;
  • ­The Project shall be constructed, operated and maintained in a manner that observes and does not interfere with seasonal hunting, trapping, fishing and harvesting and keeps disturbance to a minimum;
  • ­No new transmission lines shall be located underwater; and
  • ­The Project will develop and implement an environmental and social management plan which will include acceptable and effective mitigation measures for any sacred sites, gathering sites, and harvesting sites.
3

CONFIDENTIALITY

The Project shall respect confidentiality and comply with any conditions of use for any Traditional Land and Resource Use information provided by the communities, including intellectual property.

4

OWNERSHIP

Our communities must maintain decision-making and ownership and receive benefits in the Project.

*Wataynikaneyap Power is majority-owned by a partnership of 24 First Nation communities with Fortis Inc. and other private investors with a mandate to connect 17 remote First Nations communities to the electrical grid and bring reliable energy.