New Brunswick's Metepenagiag First Nation is initiating talks with the federal government to reacquire about 1,200 hectares in the Red Bank area near Miramichi.

Noah Augustine, chief of the Metepenagiag First Nation, said the land was wrongfully taken from his community in 1895.

He said he hopes the land will provide new economic opportunities for his community. But Augustine said it won't be at the cost of displacing the land's current occupants.

"Consistent with the specific claims policy is that there would be no displacement of third-party interests. So the squatters that now occupy these lands that belong to Metepenagiag will not be affected," he said.

"However, we will negotiate a settlement agreement which will involve compensation for those 3,000 acres of land, the value of those lands and the improvements made to those lands since 1895."

It isn't clear how many people live in the disputed territory.

Meantime, a federal government representative said there's no word on how long it will take to complete negotiations.

Evaluation needed

Before a settlement can be reached, the two sides would have to decide on the current value of the land and quantify the losses the community incurred. It isn't clear how many people would be affected by any land transfer

In 2007, Metepenagiag reached a deal with the federal government to receive compensation for land taken from its reserve a century ago.

At the time, Augustine said the band would receive $1.35 million in compensation for the lost 66 hectares and for the loss of use of the land.

The First Nation have also been given the right to buy 121 hectares of land anywhere in the province and turn it into a part of its territory.