First Nation communities a focus for Lynx North.

With a mandate of improving the quality of life of its First Nations stakeholders, Thunder Bay's Lynx North Engineering has spent the last 11 years on projects ranging from basic development planning to full-scale water treatment facilities.

"We've been kept pretty busy from the get-go," says Larry Pond, president and co-founder.

"It's been steady work, and it's looking to continue that way through 2007."

The company is majority owned by the Matawa First Nations Council, made up of 10 Ojibway and Cree First Nations communities in the Nishnawbe Aski Nation territory throughout Northern Ontario.

Prior to the company's inception in 1996, the concern in these communities was that Toronto firms qualified to do the necessary engineering work did not have the appropriate cultural sensitivities, Pond says. What's more, the lack of competition for flights to remote locations drove up the cost of bringing in engineers and most importantly, the profits from the contracts were traveling south rather than staying in the northern economy.

Pond was working for a Thunder Bay consultant with a focus on First Nations-related projects, when he found himself chatting with members of the Matawa First Nations Council. He discovered that his plans to create his own engineering firm coincided with their plan to do the same, and the business was born.

"It was one of those 'right place at the right time' kind of things. It worked out pretty well."

To demonstrate the company's strong focus on First Nations projects, Pond points to the numerous projects currently underway:

* Upgrading the water and sewer treatment plants for the Webequie First Nation.

* Upgrading fire protection for the Aroland First Nation.

* Assisting with the automation of the diesel power plant in the Eabematoong First Nation, where it is also expanding a subdivision and developing a 20-year plan to guide the community's growth.

Lynx North also recently completed a variety of projects for Neskantaga First Nation, where the community was transferred from a septic field system to a piped sewer system with a new sewage lagoon. The company also assisted Neskantaga with the extension of its water distribution system to allow for development of additional housing.

A focus on projects such as these led the company to win a "Building Communities Award" during the 2003 Nishnawbe Aski Nation Business Awards.

While 65 per cent of the company's business is in First Nations projects, Lynx North also works for private clients and a number of municipalities.

It is working with the City of Thunder Bay to develop computer modeling for the local sewer system, which they are also upgrading to reduce basement flooding and overflows into nearby waterways.

Heavy competition among engineering firms across the province has drained Lynx North of its First Nations engineers, who have largely headed to southern Ontario in recent years.

Currently, the eight-person company is without any First Nations staff, though Pond expects to be able to hire some from local communities to act as site inspectors during the summer.

In an attempt to lure skilled Aboriginal workers to remain with the company, Lynx North has established a $1,000 engineering scholarship for the member communities of the Matawa First Nations Council.

An engineer in Thunder Bay since 1983, Pond says he has witnessed the gradual infrastructure changes among First Nations communities.

"When we first started, many communities had no organized water supply, and some had to trudge down to the river with a bucket, which raises all sorts of health issues. There has since been a broad range of changes in water quality standards and government funding, so these same places have gone from nothing to basic chlorination to what can be seen as the same treated water standards as everyone else."

Pond, who jokes that his last name suits his focus on water-related engineering, says his interest in assisting First Nations communities is about a human level gratification that is difficult to find elsewhere.

"It's a matter of being able to see an immediate effect on these communities. When we've helped with the treating of running water, you can really, tangibly see what it means for people. It's very satisfying."

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By NICK STEWART

Northern Ontario Business