Bipoint (A) from site north of Chick Lake and microblade cores (B)   from site south of Chick Lake, Sahtu Settlement Area

The 2006 Heritage Resources Program represents the fourth field season associated with the Mackenzie Gas Project. The project is being proposed by a consortium of companies including Imperial Oil Resources Ventures Ltd., the Aboriginal Pipeline Group, ConocoPhillips Canada Ltd., Shell Canada Limited, and ExxonMobil Canada Properties Ltd.

At present, the project includes plans to develop natural gas production facilities at Taglu, Parsons Lake, and Niglintgak; a gathering system that will collect the natural gas and associated gas liquids from these three fields and transport them to facilities in the Inuvik area; a natural gas liquids pipeline from the Inuvik area to Norman Wells; a natural gas pipeline (the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline) from the Inuvik area south via Norman Wells that will connect to an existing pipeline in north-western Alberta allowing access to the market; and a number of infrastructure locations that will be required to support the construction and continued operation of the pipeline.

The 2006 field program was conducted by a team of archaeologists from the Mackenzie Project Environment Group. Numerous local assistants were also involved with the fieldwork and included:

• Inuvialuit Region: Dennis Chicksi, Robert McLeod
• Gwich’in Area: Allen Firth, Fred Jerome
• K’ahsho Got’ine Sahtu Area: Alfred Orleas, Barthy Kotchile, Jean Marie Rabisca, Leon Taureau
• Tulita Sahtu Area: Frederick Andrew, Pearl Lennie, Shawn Etchinelle
• Pehdzeh Ki First Nation - Deh Cho Region: Darcy Moses, Justin Clillie, Katie Antoine, Lawrence Nayally
• Trout Lake Dene Band - Deh Cho Region: Tony Jumbo, Fred Punch
• Liidlii Kue First Nation - Deh Cho Region: Edward Cholo
• Jean Marie River First Nation - Deh Cho Region: Tod Minoza

Crew conducting shovel tests at a proposed borrow source in the Deh Cho Region

The 2006 field program focused primarily on conducting heritage resource impact assessments at a number of potential infrastructure and granular resource extraction sites that are situated along roughly 1,400 kilometres of proposed pipeline route stretching from the tip of the Mackenzie Delta to the Alberta border. Investigations were also conducted in areas that are planned to be geotechnically tested during the 2007 winter drilling program. Investigations were completed by three crews of three to four people including a local assistant. Ground based assessments were conducted at over 215 locations resulting in the discovery of 55 new heritage resource sites. Fourteen previously recorded heritage sites were also re-visited.

Both prehistoric and historic sites were recorded as a result of these investigations. Archaeological sites recorded include both large and small lithic scatters, several exposed hearths, four burials, an isolated projectile point and several historic trails. One of the sites also included a microblade and several microblade cores. Traditional land use sites were also commonly recorded and include a number of trails, traplines, cabins, camps, and wood gathering areas.