GNWT-ENR has issued a letter to all holders of water licences in the NWT regarding their compliance and enforcement strategy during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Any questions about this should be directed to Brett Elkin, A/ADM Operations.

The Land and Water Boards of the Mackenzie Valley (LWBs) are pleased to announce the release of the Standard Water Licence Conditions Template. This Template will be used during the review and approval process for new licences, renewals and amendments (including amendments initiated by the licensee, the LWBs, or as part of an assignment process). Please note, this is not a comprehensive list of all the conditions that may be included in licences issued by the Boards, and not all conditions will be included in all licences.

In light of the rapidly changing situation regarding the risks of transmission of COVID-19 in the NWT, the Land and Water Boards of the Mackenzie Valley (GLWB, SLWB, WLWB, MVLWB) are taking a proactive approach to limit the possible spread of the virus by closing its offices to the public, effective March 19, 2020.

Coming up March 3, 2020 at 8:30 am, the Wek'èezhìı Land and Water Board will be hosting a Technical Session for Diavik Diamond Mines Inc. (DDMI) Water Licence (W2015L2-001) Amendment Application to allow for underground mining of the A21 Kimberlite pipe. The session will be held at the Explorer Hotel in Yellowknife, in Kat D and E. This session is intended for Parties engaged in the process to meet and discuss questions or concerns with DDMI and their consultants directly. For further details, see the attached agenda.

Thank you for your recent participation at the Resource Co-management in the Mackenzie Valley Workshop 2020 held at the Explorer Hotel in Yellowknife.  We invite you to share your thoughts on the workshop, please follow the link to enter our survey.  This will help us greatly in organizing future workshops.

MVRMA Agenda and PPTs

The SLWB is hosting a community tour and is holding community meetings in Fort Good Hope (February 18), Norman Wells (February 19), and Tulita (February 20). The purpose of the meetings are to meet with the public regarding the processes of the Land and Water Boards of the Mackenzie Valley. 

Guideline for the Design, Operation, Monitoring, Maintenance and Closure of Petroleum Hydrocarbon-Contaminated Soil Treatment Facilities in the Northwest Territories (2020)

Coming up February 11-13, 2020, the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board will be hosting a Technical Session at the Hay River Recreation Centre for the town's Type A municipal licence renewal (MV2019L3-0010). This technical session is meant to provide a forum where parties can discuss their concerns about the Town of Hay River’s Water Licence renewal application directly with the proponent and its consultants. Please note that the technical session is not a public hearing; Board members and their legal counsel will not be participating.

The Wek'èezhìı Land and Water Board is currently seeking a Regulatory Specialist for our Yellowknife office. For further details, please see the attached job posting that closes Sunday, January 19, 2020. 

Coming up January 20-24, 2020 the MVLWB will be holding a Public Hearing on Giant Mine Remediation Project Post-Environmental Assessment Information Package (MV2007L8-0031) and Land Use Permit (MV2019X0007) application. It will be held at the Chateau Nova, in the Caribou Room, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. each day. This event is open to the public, however public input will be limited to a brief portion of the agenda, the majority of the agenda is for registered interveners.

Click here to register!

The Tłı̨chǫ Government is currently looking for a Regulatory Specialist in their Culture and Lands Protection Department. The position is a full-time, permanent role, and is located in Yellowknife. Closing date for applications is November 22, 2019, at 5:00 pm. Please see the attached document for details. To apply, submit a resume and cover letter to hr@tlicho.com.

For several years the Land and Water Boards have been involved with guest lecturing at Aurora College in Fort Smith as part of the Environment and Natural Resources Technology Program. On Wednesday October 30, 2019 representatives from both the Land and Water Boards of the Mackenzie Valley, and the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board, will be co-leading this year’s guest lecture and running a mock-simulation of the regulatory process from application to Environmental Assessment to permitting and licensing for registered students of the college.

Coming up October 22-23, 2019, the 10th Annual NWT Water Stewardship Strategy Implementation Workshop will take place at the Chief Drygeese Centre in Dettah, NT.

The workshop will bring water partners together to share recent implementation work and discuss how to continue to work together. This years theme is Northern waters in a changing climate, and MVLWB staff will be in attendance. For further details on this event, see the attached document. 

The Land and Water Boards of the Mackenzie Valley, the Mackenzie Valley Review Board, the Government of the Northwest Territories, and Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada are excited to host the MVRMA Workshop 2020 at the Explorer Hotel in Yellowknife from Tuesday, February 4 to Thursday, February 6, 2020. This year’s workshop theme is engagement and consultation.

Are you interested in becoming a Board Member? For more information, please go to www.enr.gov.nt.ca/boards. 

MVLWB staff will be joining the Dehcho Water Resource Officer to assist with Surveillance Network Program (SNP) sampling and to meet with community staff in three Dehcho communities with water licenses. The SNP is the part of a water licence that speaks to water quality monitoring. Having a water license helps make sure the community’s water is clean and safe for drinking, that community facilities are working effectively, and helps monitor and minimize the deposit of waste and potential impacts to the environment from the sewage facilities and landfill. Our team will be

The Community Outreach Coordinator, Tanya Lantz, and Regulatory Specialists Erica Janes and Aswathy Varghese will be joining the Local Government Administrators of the NWT at their Annual General Meeting and Tradeshow from September 24 -26, 2019. The theme this year is “Connect with the people that make or influence major decisions at a municipal government level in the Northwest Territories”.  For more information please click the link below.

Coming up September 19, 2019, from 9am to 5pm, the MVLWB will be hosting an Effluent Quality Criteria Workshop for Snap Lake. The workshop will be held at the Nunasi Building in the Genesis Room 201. This workshop is intended for Parties actively involved in the Renewal and Amendment process who are already well versed in the various submissions made throughout the regulatory process to date by De Beers.

The purpose is to:

The WLWB is excited to welcome Rhiana Bams and Ellen Reyes to its team! Rhiana joins us from Environment and Climate Change Canada with an enforcement and closure background, and Ellen from Golder’s mining division in Vancouver. We look forward to Rhiana and Ellen's contributions to the WLWB! 

The Wek'èezhìı Renewable Resources Board (WRRB) is holding a Board Meeting in Whatì this week and it is open to the public. Interested parties are welcome to come by and listen while the Board makes decisions on the items on WRRB's agenda. Lunch will be provided both days. 

The MVLWB is hosting the Giant Mine Remediation Project Technical Session September 11 to 13, 2019, from 9am to 5pm at the Explorer Hotel, Katimavik Room A. The purpose is to provide a forum where parties can discuss concerns about the proposed Giant Mine Remediation Project directly with the proponent. Such a discussion, as facilitated by Board staff, will hopefully increase each parties’ understanding of the issues as well as of the perspectives of others in preparation for the Public Hearing, currently scheduled for January 2020.