Overview
- Ontario committed nearly $40 million to Webequie for a community centre with an arena, an airport terminal rebuild, runway upgrades including a helicopter pad, added electricity capacity, and materials and equipment for early road work.
- Webequie Chief Cornelius Wabasse said the agreement brings badly needed mental-health supports and positions the supply road as a path to economic opportunity for a fly-in community facing shorter winter-road seasons.
- Premier Doug Ford said construction on the Webequie Supply Road could start as early as June 2026 if the federal government drops what he calls a duplicative impact assessment, citing a nearly complete Webequie-led environmental assessment.
- Webequie has led a six-year environmental assessment that has reached the draft report stage, while planning continues on two linked routes: the Northern Link Road co-led by Webequie and an EA led by Marten Falls for a north–south connector to the provincial highway system.
- Neskantaga First Nation criticized Ontario’s push to bypass the federal process and called on Ottawa to designate Wyloo’s proposed Eagle’s Nest mine for review under the Impact Assessment Act.