First Nations Agreement Does Not Override the CEAA: "Quebec (Attorney General) v. Moses"

In this decision the Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC") ruled that a mining project located in territory covered by the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement (the "James Bay Agreement") must be reviewed under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act ("CEAA") before Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) can issue an authorization for the destruction of fish habitat under s. 35(2) of the federal Fisheries Act.

The subject of the appeal was a proposed vanadium mine in the vicinity of Chibougamau, Quebec (the Project). The Project will involve disruptions to watercourses and lakes in the area, as well as construction of tailings ponds, all of which will result in the harmful alteration of fish habitat. Accordingly, the Project required a permit under the Fisheries Act before it could proceed. The issue on appeal was whether such a permit would be issued by DFO automatically, following a provincial environmental review process mandated under the James Bay Agreement, or