Big Project for CanNorth

When a large and well-known conglomerate like Jacobs Engineering Group calls and asks for help, you don’t ask too many questions. You just say yes.

Canada North Environmental Services LP (CanNorth) has been subcontracted to work with Jacobs (formerly CH2M Hill) to complete the environmental work for portions of the Enbridge Inc. Line 3 Pipeline Replacement Project that runs from Hardisty, Alberta, to Gretna, Manitoba.

“It’s huge,” says Jocelyn Howery, CanNorth’s hydrology division manager and the Enbridge Project Manager. “It’s definitely one of our biggest projects on the books this year.”

CanNorth will be working with Jacobs and the Enbridge environment team to ensure that the project’s impacts on the environment are mitigated. This work includes identifying nesting birds and rare plant occurrences along the pipeline right-of-way, conducting water quality monitoring during creek crossings, and completing archeological surveys.

“This is a very high-profile project and it’s exciting to be involved,” says Howery. As one of the biggest pipeline projects in the country, it is under great scrutiny by the National Energy Board.

With multiple locations along the line being worked on at once, as many as 10 CanNorth employees will be working on the project this year near Kerrobert and south of Regina.

A major aspect of the project is the involvement of local First Nations people. Last year, while the CanNorth team worked near Provost in Alberta, members of the Ermineskin First Nation worked alongside CanNorth’s trained biologists as field assistants. This partnership provided a valuable learning and training experience for locals who may want to enter the environmental field.

CanNorth has a staff of about 60 people, including staff at a risk assessment office in Markham, Ontario. The risk assessment division started in 2016. Of that number, Howery says there are 44 people who are professional environmental consultants, which makes CanNorth perhaps the largest environmental consulting firm in the province.

First Nations Insurance continues to grow 30 years later

As the First Nations Insurance Services slides into its fourth decade, Helen Burgess still believes the basics haven’t changed for the business.

Burgess, who steered FNIS for 20 years before relinquishing the general manager duties last summer, says her job as helping to protect people and teaching them to prepare for their future has not wavered in all her years.

“I have tried, we all have tried, to help educate the people on the importance of our services,” says Burgess, who is now in her 21st year with FNIS. “We want people to know it’s not just a deduction off your paycheque … It boils down to education. In that regard, that has been the biggest change.”

Helping people understand the importance of insurance as well as the concept of saving for retirement has always been a priority to First Nations Insurance Services.

Part of that is the strength of FNIS and building relationships with its clients, something that was celebrated last June as the firm held its 30th birthday.

Around 75 people attended the event, held June 8, 2017, at the Saskatoon Inn as part of a two-and-a-half day annual benefits workshop. Former employees, corporate partners, insurance carriers and others got together for an evening of celebration which included a performance by Voices of the North. The party gave FNIS a chance to look back and pay tribute to those who had worked tirelessly to help the business flourish.

For Burgess, it was a chance to say goodbye from her chair as general manager, a position she devoted much of her time and energy to for those 20 years. It was under her leadership that FNIS really began to grow into the successful enterprise it is today.

“I made the decision last spring that I wanted to ease into retirement,” says Burgess, who is still a licensed agent for the company as well as providing assistance where needed.

“(The time) has gone by so quickly. It’s hard to imagine that much time has elapsed.”

However, the focus of helping First Nations boards and their respective organizations has not wavered. Even the FNIS staff has not changed or altered much over the years with many people still working with 20-plus years under the belt. That plays into what Burgess says about the importance of building relationships.

“We care about all our clients.”