Contaminated sites on reserve: Federal law, policy and the transition to First Nations Land Management
Date
2026
Authors
James, Meredith
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Abstract
In this thesis I undertake a comprehensive review of federal contaminated sites policy to examine the role of federal institutions in shaping the design and implementation of that policy on reserve. I adopt a historical institutional approach, beginning at the emergence of federal contaminated sites policy in the late 1980s and tracing its evolution to the present. I argue that the federal approach to contaminated sites is the product of a policy paradigm oriented around the federal government’s role as a “prudent landowner”. I also examine the interaction of federal contaminated sites policy with the Framework Agreement on First Nation Land Management. I argue that implementation of the environmental provisions of the Framework Agreement has been layered onto the existing federal contaminated sites regime. This has created misalignments that limit the scope of environmental self-government, particularly where First Nations’ expectations that contaminated sites will be remediated before the federal government transfers governance authority are not met. I explore how First Nations may use environmental law-making powers under the Framework Agreement to respond to these constraints. I propose that environmental laws enacted by First Nations offer a pathway to address some environmental harms and also contest the ideas embedded in the prudent landowner paradigm.
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Keywords
First Nations land management, Contaminated sites, Reserve lands, Indigenous environmental governance, Environmental liability, Indigenous