BEAHR Contaminated Sites Management training in Behchokǫ̀
The Tłı̨chǫ Government, in partnership with the Government of Canada, Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) and Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC), have successfully delivered a pilot training program for Contaminated Sites Management. The Tłı̨chǫ Government worked closely with staff from the Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan (FCSAP) and Environmental Careers Organization (ECO) Canada to customize the curriculum of Building Environmental Aboriginal Human Resources (BEAHR). The three-week pilot project was facilitated by John Blyth, of Fort Smith’s Blyth and Bathe.
A memorable experience for the students was the full-day spent at the Rayrock Mine Site. Members of the Kwetı̨ı̨ɂaà Elders Committee accompanied the students on a tour of the former mine site, led by INAC staff. There were plenty of hands-on field experiences, from netting fish while wading in the stream below the bridge to Bay Island to tours of the Behchokǫ̀ Water Treatment Plant and Public Works facility for Community Government.
The training was successful in having twelve participants earn their Contaminated Sites Management certification from ECO Canada/BEAHR. The pilot project has built local capacity in Contaminated Sites work for residents in Behchokǫ̀, as well as building “Train the Trainer” capacity, as a key segment of this training was training future facilitators of the program. The late Chief Jimmy Bruneau’s words, ‘Strong Like Two People’ has been the guiding vision for this training that brings together Traditional Knowledge and Environmental Science; Tłı̨chǫ Elders and Youth working together to take care of the land for future generations.
BEAHR Contaminated Sites Management training in Behchokǫ̀ from Tlicho Government on Vimeo.
For more information, please contact:
Land Use Planner
Department of Culture and Lands Protection
Tłı̨chǫ Ndek'àowo / Tłı̨chǫ Government
Box 412, Behchokǫ̀, NT X0E 0Y0
Phone: 867-392-6381 Ext 1356
