CPAWS Yukon

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Posts by Adil Darvesh:

July 20 2016

CPAWS urges Premiers to protect Canada’s wilderness and confront climate change

As Canada’s thirteen territorial and provincial Premiers meet in Whitehorse this week to collaborate on issues of national importance, CPAWS Yukon is calling on our nation’s leaders to implement strong action on climate change, including emissions reductions and protection of Canada’s wilderness.

At their last meetings in Vancouver in March, governments agreed to create a pan-Canadian framework for clean growth and climate change, which would include actions to limit temperature increase and foster resilience to climate change. In order to achieve these goals, steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions will need to be taken quickly and our ecosystems will need to be protected. CPAWS Yukon urges Canada’s premiers to look at the creation of more provincial, territorial and marine protected areas as the backbone of a climate adaptation strategy.

Chris Rider, Executive Director of CPAWS Yukon stated, “In the fight against climate change, conservation needs to be a cornerstone of our efforts. Nature is essential for both reducing our vulnerability to the impacts that are already happening, and mitigating climate change in the future.”

Natural areas provide a necessary service by storing the carbon that it emitted into the atmosphere. In fact, Canada’s Boreal forest stores about 186 billion tons of carbon, mostly within soils and peatlands. But as these ecosystems are altered by climate change or converted to other uses such as mining and oil and gas extraction, they can actually become sources of carbon emissions, and their ability to shelter humans and all species from the impacts of climate change is diminished. Next to habitat loss, climate change is also the biggest threat to wildlife and biodiversity, with 20-30% of species at increased risk of extinction. Conservation corridors will be especially important for protecting nature that is ‘on the move’ as a result of climate change.

The Peel Watershed is a prime example of how climate change and nature protection are interlinked. The boreal forest of the Peel helps mitigate climate change by sequestering carbon, and the region also serves as the northern anchor of a wildlife corridor that would stretch from Yellowstone National Park in the United States to the Yukon, providing refuge for species that are displaced by climate change. CPAWS Yukon is working alongside the Yukon Conservation Society, the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun, the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, and Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation to protect the Peel from major industrial development that would damage its ecological value, including in the fight against climate change (see more at www.protectpeel.ca)

Rider concluded: “Canada is very fortunate to have vast wilderness areas that ensure we have clean air and water, provide habitat for incredible biodiversity, and support our economy. CPAWS Yukon encourages Canada’s Premiers to remember that protecting nature is also an essential part of the climate change solution.”

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Media Contact:

Chris Rider, Executive Director, CPAWS Yukon: (867) 393-8080

July 11 2016

CPAWS National sounds alarm over Parks Canada’s shift away from nature conservation

CPAWS Yukon News

OTTAWA – In its latest annual report released in advance of Canada Parks Day, the national office of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) is calling on Parks Canada to re‐focus on its legal obligation to protect nature as the first priority for managing our national parks, and to immediately stop development in Banff and Jasper National Parks. The criticisms in the report relate primarily to developments that are jeopardizing wilderness and wildlife in mountain parks in southern Canada, and not the three national parks located in the Yukon – Kluane National Park, Ivvavik National Park and Vuntut National Park. However, the report identifies serious problems across Canada’s national park system, such as a precipitous decline in conservation funding, which could impact the ecological integrity of the Yukon’s national parks in the future.

In recent years, CPAWS National has observed a major shift in how Parks Canada is managing our national parks, moving away from its priority mandate of nature conservation, and towards a greater focus on tourism and marketing, increasing visitation, and revenue generation. This shift in priorities has resulted in developments being approved behind closed doors, with inadequate regard for how they impact on parks’ ecological integrity or for public input, and financial decisions being made that undermine the Agency’s conservation and science capacity.

“National parks are supposed to be the gold standard for conservation in our country,” says Alison Woodley, National Director of CPAWS’ Parks Program. “If Parks Canada shifts away from its conservation mandate, where will our wildlife and wilderness be safe?

“Due to their remote access, pressures from visitation are not a current threat to National Parks in the Yukon, and we are generally pleased with the direction that Parks Canada is taking in the territory. But the report’s finding that tourism is being prioritized over wilderness protection is certainly troubling,” said Chris Rider, CPAWS Yukon’s Executive Director.

CPAWS is encouraged by the new federal government’s commitments to limit development in our parks, re‐focus on protecting their ecological integrity, re‐invest in science‐based management, and restore open, transparent decision‐making. So far two important decisions have been made that begin to deliver on these promises – cancelling the giant Mother Canada statue proposed for Cape Breton Highlands National Park and strengthening legislation for the Rouge National Urban Park to focus on protecting ecological integrity as the first priority. However, as this report highlights, there are systemic problems in Parks Canada’s management approach that need to be overcome for the new government to fully implement their commitments. For example:

1) Limiting development: Recent development approvals include a massive expansion of the Lake Louise Ski Resort in Banff into legally protected wilderness, commercial accommodations proposed for Maligne Lake in Jasper National Park that contravene the management plan; and a $66 million paved bike path through sensitive caribou and grizzly bear habitat which mysteriously appeared in the 2016 Federal Budget with no prior public discussion or environmental review.

2) Re‐focusing on ecological integrity and funding for science: Parks Canada’s last publicly available report indicates that less than half of national park ecosystems measured were deemed to be in “good condition”, more than a third were in declining health, while 41% of park ecosystems remained to be assessed. There is an urgent need for more conservation effort, not less. Yet over the past five years there has been an over 30% decrease in Parks Canada’s conservation staffing while visitor experience staffing has risen by 9% over the same time period. The report also finds that public “state of park” reporting has virtually disappeared, and park management plan reviews are less frequent.

3) Open, transparent decision‐making: Public consultations on development proposals within national parks have become short processes that are geographically restricted, and that largely ignore public feedback. Legally required biennial Round Tables on Parks Canada’s performance are no longer focused on accountability, instead focusing on how to increase park visitation with little or no attention to how well the Agency is delivering on its core conservation mandate.

“We have put forward 17 recommendations to the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change that we believe will help get Parks Canada back on track to conserving nature as the first priority in our national parks,” says Woodley. “We hope the new government will act immediately to stop developments in Banff and Jasper, and restore Parks Canada’s culture as a science‐based nature conservation organization working in the long term public interest. The future of wildlife and wilderness in our national parks depends on re‐focusing on nature first and foremost in their management.”

Read the full report.

Read the Executive Summary with recommendations.

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Media Contacts:

For interviews with CPAWS National, contact: Karen Turner (613) 569‐7226 x 232.
For interviews with CPAWS Yukon, contact: Jason LaChappelle (867) 393-8080

June 28 2016

Yukoners gather as Peel enters national spotlight

CPAWS Yukon News

Over 130 Peel supporters came together in Whitehorse last week to hear the latest on the Peel Watershed legal case. The event followed the Supreme Court of Canada’s announcement that the application for leave to appeal filed by CPAWS Yukon and its partners had been granted and that the case will be heard in Ottawa in 2017.

CPAWS Yukon’s Executive Director, Chris Rider, and David Neufeld from the Board of Directors of the Yukon Conservation Society joined the chiefs of the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun, the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in and Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation on stage at the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre, while esteemed Aboriginal rights lawyer Thomas Berger participated via Skype. The event was organized to mark the latest milestone in the decades long journey to protect the Peel watershed from being largely opened up to industrial exploitation. Our appeal is based on the Yukon Government’s outright rejection – at the eleventh hour – of the Final Recommended Plan in 2014, in favour of its own back-door plan to open up 71% of the Peel to mining and oil and gas activity, despite the overwhelming opposition of the First Nations and Yukoners who had participated in the seven-year consultation process.

Speaking live from Vancouver, Berger said: “We will ask the Supreme Court of Canada to reinstate Justice Veale’s judgment. We think it was the right approach,” referring to the 2014 Yukon Supreme Court decision that would prevent the government from reducing the level of protection identified in the Final Recommended Plan. Mr. Berger did not understate the importance of the upcoming Supreme Court of Canada decision. “It will determine the course of land use planning in the Yukon over the next 50 years,” he remarked.

The First Nations chiefs and representatives from the conservation groups each spoke passionately about the significance of the case being heard by the country’s highest court, while photos of significant moments in the campaign’s history streamed in the background, including the elders gathering and the water ceremony.

Chris Rider reminded the audience that in its submission, the Yukon Government urged the Supreme Court of Canada not to hear the case because, in its words, “this is not an issue of public or national importance.” The court’s decision to hear the appeal means that they – like us – obviously disagree.

Chris_Rider_at_Peel_Gathering_and_Reception

David Neufeld, Secretary on the Board of Directors of the Yukon Conservation Society, commented on the connection between the ecological importance of the Peel and respect for First Nations rights. “The government’s refusal to accept the [final recommended] plan not only undermines the pristine natural value of the Peel country, but also threatens the cultural compact between First Nations and newcomers that makes our territory such a special place to live,” he said.

The First Nations chiefs reflected on how this case goes to the very heart of the final agreements they spent decades negotiating with the government.

The newly elected chief of the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, Bruce Charlie, said: “We are not opposed to sustainable development, but we will stand strong and united for the protection of the resources in which we have an obligation to effectively manage as defined in our UFA.”

Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Chief, Roberta Joseph, said that her citizens would prefer to be working to implement the Peel Watershed Planning Commission’s plan instead of appealing to the courts to uphold the integrity of their agreements. “We would rather be living with the vision of the important natural area that the Yukon public spent countless hours sharing with us during numerous community sessions and consultations,” she said.

Chief Simon Mervyn of the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun concluded by speaking about the unity that exists between the First Nations and environmental groups on the need to protect the Peel. “Our ancestors entrusted us to keep the land, the animals, the rivers and the wilderness as pristine as we were given it to manage when we signed our final agreements,” he remarked.

People in the audience, as well as those watching online from home or from community hubs set up in Mayo, Dawson and Inuvik, had the opportunity to ask questions of the panel. There was interest in how the outcome of the upcoming territorial election could influence things, and in how the Supreme Court has ruled in the past on cases relating to First Nations rights. Given the public accessibility of the hearing, one audience member also suggested that Yukoners charter a flight to Ottawa.

The final comment of the evening went to Jimmy Johnny, a Na-cho Nyak Dun elder, who said: “I have been out there in the Peel watershed from 1958 to 2010 every year from July to October. My brother, sister, mother, dad, and uncle also. To the Government of Yukon, please do not destroy our history.”

The Supreme Court of Canada is likely to hear the appeal in the early months of 2017, though a final date has yet to be set. CPAWS Yukon will provide ongoing updates as we prepare to go to Ottawa.

To watch the full broadcast of the Peel Gathering & Reception, click here.
To sign and share the Peel Pledge, visit: www.protectpeel.ca.
To view more photos from the event, click here

June 9 2016

Peel Watershed Case headed to the Supreme Court of Canada

CPAWS Yukon News

First Nations & Yukon Environmental groups granted leave to take the Peel Watershed Case to the Supreme Court of Canada

On June 9th 2016, the Supreme Court of Canada gave notice that it will be hearing The First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun et al v Government of Yukon, otherwise known as the Peel Watershed case. The case will be heard in Ottawa after leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada was submitted by the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun, the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, CPAWS Yukon and the Yukon Conservation Society in December 2015.

“We signed our Final Agreements with Canada and the Government of Yukon in 1993, and we came to the table again in good faith for the Peel Watershed consultations,” said Chief Simon Mervyn of the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun. “We are pleased that Canada’s highest court recognizes the legally binding nature of these agreements and the national significance of this case.”

The Peel Watershed is home to the First Nation of Na-Cho Nyak Dun, the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, and the Tetlit Gwich’in Council.

“The Supreme Court’s decision confirms what we’ve maintained all along: there are significant legal questions raised by the Yukon Government’s conduct during the Peel planning process that deserve the Supreme Court’s—and Canada’s—attention,” Chief Roberta Joseph of the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in said. “We are thankful for this opportunity and look forward to defending the integrity of our Final Agreements.”

Chief Bruce Charlie from the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation expresses his elation on the decision. He states: “This pristine wilderness, caribou habitat and eco systems is an essential element of our very existence, the integrity of our agreements will be clarified once and for all and will stand the test of time”.

The Peel Watershed is one of the largest unspoiled natural areas in North America. At 68,000 km², it is larger than the entire province of Nova Scotia.

“The Peel River Watershed is a wild land in a world that is quickly losing its wilderness,” added Yukon Conservation Society Executive Director Christina Macdonald, “We are looking to the Supreme Court of Canada to help us keep it that way.”

Six rivers flow through this landscape into the Peel River, which travels north to the Arctic Ocean via the Mackenzie River Delta. Grizzly bears, wolves, and caribou roam freely; migratory birds find sanctuary in the wetlands; and rare plant populations thrive.

Chris Rider, Executive Director of CPAWS Yukon, stated “The Supreme Court of Canada’s decision to hear this case shows that they recognize the value of the Peel Watershed. It is a treasure of international significance and it deserves protection. Beyond this, the final ruling will set a precedent for all future land use planning in the Yukon and the significance of that cannot be underestimated.”

Lawyer for the case Thomas Berger says the proponents are in a good position.

Mr. Berger stated, “It is important to remember that the Court of Appeal’s judgment upheld Justice Veale’s decision to set aside the Government of Yukon’s Peel Watershed Regional Land Use Plan of January 2014. The Court of Appeal held that the Government of Yukon failed to honour the letter and spirit of its treaty during the initial consultation with First Nations and Yukoners.

However, the Court of Appeal, instead of remitting the matter to the stage of final consultation (as Justice Veale had), remitted the planning process to the earlier stage at which the Government of Yukon, having received the Recommended Plan (back in 2010), was to consult with First Nations and affected communities and then approve, reject or propose modifications to the Recommended Plan.

The Court of Appeal’s judgment thus allows the Government of Yukon to go back to 2010 and to start the process over at the point when it received the Commission’s Recommended Plan. The Court of Appeal also held that the Government of Yukon had final authority at the end of the day to reject any plan resulting from the process.

We are now in a position to argue, before the Supreme Court of Canada, that on all of these points the judgement of the Court of Appeal should be set aside and Justice Veale’s judgement reinstated.“

Mr. Berger concluded: “We will now be moving the appeal forward as quickly as we can under the rules of The Supreme Court.”
The affected First Nations and environmental groups will be organizing public information events within Whitehorse and the communities in the weeks to come. Notice of these events will be widely circulated.
Stand with the First Nations and environmental groups in their work to protect the Peel Watershed by signing the new Peel Pledge, which was launched today on http://www.protectpeel.ca
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Media Contacts:
Chris Rider, Executive Director, CPAWS Yukon: 867-393-8080 (ext. 4)

Christina Macdonald, Executive Director, Yukon Conservation Society: 867-668-5678

Thomas R. Berger O.C., Q.C: 604-605-5555

Margaret D. Rosling, Aldridge + Rosling Barristers and Solicitors: 604-605-5555

Chief Simon Mervyn, First Nation of Na-Cho Nyäk Dun, Chief Roberta Joseph, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in & Chief Bruce Charlie, Vuntut Gwitchin: via Wayne Potoroka 867-993-7100 Ext 108

Background:
The Peel Watershed case was heard by the Supreme Court of Yukon in 2014 and Court of Appeal of Yukon in 2015. The interpretation of the terms of the land use planning process laid out in the Umbrella Final Agreement which Canada, the Government of Yukon and the Yukon First Nations entered into in 1993 is central to the case. These terms were subsequently incorporated into the Final Agreements of various First Nations including Na-Cho Nyak Dun, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, and Vuntut Gwitchin. Both Yukon courts found that the Government of Yukon failed to honour the letter and spirit of its obligations under the Final Agreements during the Peel Watershed land use planning process.

Where the courts differed was on the remedy for the Government of Yukon’s breach of the land use planning process. The remedy in the Peel Watershed case determines at what point in the land use planning process the Government of Yukon is allowed to return to. The trial judge in the Supreme Court of Yukon ordered that the process should be returned to the stage of final consultation with the First Nations and affected communities so that the process can be completed in accordance with the Final Agreements. However, the Court of Appeal of Yukon ordered that the process should be sent back to the earlier stage of consultation on the Recommended Peel Watershed Regional Land Use Plan, so that the Government of Yukon can conduct the consultation and then decide again whether to approve, reject or propose modifications to that plan.
The courts also disagreed in respect to whether the Government of Yukon has the right, at the end of the day, to outright reject a land use plan after years of expense and consultation and after previously indicating it was only seeking to modify the regional land use planning commission’s recommended plan.

The First Nations and environmental organizations (the applicants in these proceedings) filed their application for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada on December 23, 2015. The Gwich’in Tribal Council subsequently filed a motion for leave to intervene in the application for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada.

On February 8, 2016, the Government of Yukon filed its written Response to the application for leave to appeal. The Government of Yukon argued in its Response that none of the issues in the case are of national or public importance and that the Supreme Court of Canada should not grant leave to appeal the decision of the Court of Appeal of Yukon.

Find the Peel Watershed appeal decision here: http://tinyurl.com/qx837rz

For more background and media resources on the Peel campaign and its history, go here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/mg4n4rfm6santg7/AAA_QnrKoEZOrzaV0Gj6bP-Va?dl=0

For CPAWS Yukon: http://cpawsyukon.org/

For Yukon Conservation Society: http://yukonconservation.org

December 15 2015

Application for Leave to Appeal to be Filed with the Supreme Court of Canada

CPAWS Yukon News

Media Release
December 15, 2015

Peel Watershed Case
Application for Leave to Appeal to be Filed with the Supreme Court of Canada

After careful consideration of the Yukon Court of Appeal’s decision in the Peel Watershed case, the First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun, the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, CPAWS Yukon and Yukon Conservation Society have decided to apply for leave to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court of Canada.

The application for leave to appeal will address the Yukon Court of Appeal’s ruling that the process for land use planning for the Peel Watershed should be sent back to the stage of consultation on the Recommended Peel Watershed Regional Land Use Plan, released in December 2009. The application will also seek leave to appeal the Yukon Court of Appeal’s interpretation of the procedure followed for land use planning in the Yukon under Chapter 11 of the Final Agreements between Canada, Yukon and Yukon First Nations.

The ruling of the Yukon Court of Appeal effectively returns the land use planning process to a stage completed approximately four years ago and allows the Yukon government to re-do its consultation with the First Nations and the public and then to choose whether to approve, reject or propose modifications to the Recommended Peel Watershed Regional Land Use Plan. In the application for leave to appeal the applicants will argue that this ruling was a mistake in law and that it does not uphold the integrity of the Final Agreements. The Yukon Court of Appeal also ruled that proposing modifications to a regional land use planning commission’s recommended plan does not preclude the Yukon government from rejecting the plan after final consultation. In the application for leave, the applicants will argue that this was a mistake in the interpretation of the Final Agreements and that it introduces substantial uncertainty in future land use planning processes in Yukon.

“This judgment, of the highest court in Yukon, will now govern land use planning not only in the Peel, but in every region of Yukon, as planning proceeds, for years to come,” stated lead lawyer for the respondents, Thomas R. Berger, Q.C., “It must be appealed.”

Chief Roberta Joseph of the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in added to this, stating, “There are important questions that merit consideration by the Supreme Court of Canada. We will continue doing all we can to protect the integrity of our agreements and the Peel.”
Interim Executive Director of CPAWS Yukon, Jill Pangman, spoke to the importance of the Peel Watershed to the public, stating, “In a world that’s becoming increasingly industrialized and fragmented, the most valuable resource Yukon can offer is its wildness. Yukoners spoke loud and clear over the years of consultations. The majority want to see the Peel Watershed protected. They recognize that the region’s wilderness values, ecological integrity and remarkable landscape are far too precious to squander for short term monetary gain.”

“The Peel Watershed has been home to the Gwitch’in for millennia. Generations of both Vuntut and Tetlit Gwitch’in have been sustained by the life that has flourished here. Of particular importance to the Gwitch’in Nation are the Porcupine caribou that migrate through the watershed each year. Because of all of this we stand strong on seeking protection for the Peel,” added Chief Roger Kyikavichik of the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation.
Looking beyond the Peel, to land use planning processes throughout the Territory, Yukon Conservation Society Executive Director Christina Macdonald said, “This court case is critical not only for protecting the Peel Watershed but for all future land use planning in the territory. This process allows all of us to have a say in how our natural environment is protected, developed and managed. For this reason we are committed to seeing a just process upheld.”

Chief Simon Mervyn of the First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun concluded with the words, “Our old people lived and survived off the land. They depended upon the animals and plants, the clean air and water. They understood that as humans we cannot own the land, but that it is our job to protect it. We have seen the impact industry is having on the lands and waters of the Territory and we are determined that this will not happen in the Peel Watershed. “

Once the application is filed with the Supreme Court of Canada, the Yukon government will have 30 days to respond to the application for leave to appeal. This will be followed by a further 10 days for the applicants to file any reply to the Yukon government’s arguments. Three judges of the Supreme Court of Canada will then decide whether leave to appeal is granted. A decision from the Supreme Court of Canada on whether to allow the application for leave to appeal may take a number of months.

We expect to file the application in the next few days.

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Media Contacts:

Thomas R. Berger O.C., Q.C: 604-605-5555
Chief Simon Mervyn, First Nation of Na-cho Nyäk Dun, Chief Roberta Joseph, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, and Chief Roger Kyikavichik, Vuntut Gwitchin: via Wayne Potoroka 867-993-7100 Ext 108
Jill Pangman, CPAWS Yukon: 867-332-8079
Christina Macdonald, Yukon Conservation Society: 867-668-5678

To access the leave for appeal once it is filed go to: http://tinyurl.com/jhup3mh

Background:

The plaintiffs launched legal action in the Supreme Court of Yukon on January 27, 2014 to force the Yukon government to implement a land use plan that would protect more than 54,000 square kilometres of wilderness in northern Yukon’s Peel Watershed from mining and other industrial development. The week of July 7-10, 2014, renowned lawyer Thomas R. Berger, Q.C. argued the landmark case Whitehorse in front of a packed house. The case was continued on October 24th to accommodate a deeper discussion focused on remedy. On December 2, 2014 Justice Veale delivered his written decision in which he agreed with the plaintiffs that the Yukon government had violated the land use planning process laid out in the Final Agreements with respect to the Peel Watershed. He held that the planning process should be returned to the stage where the Yukon government ran it off the rails – the final round of consultation with First Nations and the public. Justice Veale ordered that after the final round of consultation, the Yukon government was limited to approving the Final Recommended Peel Watershed Regional Land Use Plan or modifying it in accordance with the modifications it previously proposed. On December 30, 2014 the Yukon government announced it was appealing Justice Veale’s decision.

The appeal was heard by the Yukon Court of Appeal on August 20 and 21, 2015. The Court of Appeal released its Reasons for Judgment on November 4, 2015. While the Court of Appeal found that Justice Veale was essentially correct in reasoning that the Yukon government did not honour the process as properly interpreted, the Court of Appeal disagreed with the remedy granted by Justice Veale. The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal of the Yukon government in part by holding that the matter should be remitted back to the stage of consultation on the Recommended Peel Watershed Regional Land Use Plan, released by the Peel Watershed Planning Commission in December 2009.

Find the Peel appeal decision here: http://tinyurl.com/qx837rz

For more background and media resources on the Peel campaign and its history, go here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/a2rkzl0mutgd74c/N_Ao14ZEIp

December 9 2015

Press Conference and Public Event to Address What’s Next for the Peel?

CPAWS Yukon News

2015

Media Advisory
December 9, 2015

Press Conference and Public Event to Address What’s Next for the Peel?

On Tuesday, December 15th two events in Whitehorse will help answer the question of what’s next for the Peel. These events will address the Yukon Court of Appeal’s ruling with respect to the Peel Watershed and the next steps planned in response by the First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, CPAWS Yukon and Yukon Conservation Society.

Speakers for both events include:
• Chief Simon Mervyn, Nacho Nyak Dun
• Chief Roberta Joseph, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in
• Chief Roger Kyikavichik, Vuntut Gwitchin
• Jill Pangman, CPAWS Yukon
• Christina Macdonald, Yukon Conservation Society
• Margaret D. Rosling, Aldridge + Rosling

What’s Next for the Peel Press Conference
Tuesday, December 15th
11 am
Gold Rush Inn, Town Hall Room
411 Main Street

• Physical and digital press packages for the media will be available.
• Audio patches for the media will be available.
• The Gold Rush Inn would like to provide these details on parking: all guests must register vehicle license plate numbers with the front desk staff to avoid parking fee charges at the IMPARK lot now on site. If guests pay for parking, they will not be reimbursed.
• Photographs of the event for the media’s use will be available after the press conference’s conclusion at a dropbox link provided during the event.
• All speakers will be available for interviews at the conclusion of the press conference.
• The proceedings will be live tweeted @CPAWSYukon and #protectpeel.

What’s Next for the Peel Public Information Session and Live Stream
Tuesday, December 15th
7-9 pm
Yukon Beringia Interpretive Centre
Km 1425, Alaska Highway
Live streamed at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSTePF-Hf4Y

• Printed background documents will be available for those in attendance.
• The live stream audience will be able to ask questions of the speakers during the question period through the live stream chat functions, by emailing jjack@cpawsyukon.org, or by phoning or texting 867-332-0310.
• Live stream hubs are being set up in Yukon and NWT communities so community members can gather as a group to watch the live stream. Updates, including the communities involved, can be found on the Facebook event for the evening here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1686248244952196/ Live Stream Community Hubs currently confirmed include:
o Dawson City at the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Hall
o Haines Junction at the St. Elias Convention Centre (178 Backe Street)
o Inuvik at the Gwich’in Tribal Council – Main Boardroom, Chief Jim Koe Zheh Building (1-3 Council Crescent), 8:00pm to 10:00pm (Mountain Time)
• Photographs of the event for the media’s use will be available after the press conference’s conclusion at a dropbox link that will be made available the day of the event.
• The proceedings will be live tweeted @CPAWSYukon and #protectpeel.
• The video of the event will be archived at the live stream link.

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For Further Information:
Amber Church, CPAWS: (867) 393-8080 x 2 (office); (867) 335-4884 (cell); achurch@cpawsyukon.org

November 25 2015

Yukon to Send a Message to COP 21

CPAWS Yukon News

On Sunday, November 29th from 1 to 2 pm Yukoners are gathering together in Shipyards Park to send a message to COP 21, the global climate negotiations that get underway in Paris the following day.

Communities around the world are coming together on Nov. 29th to ask world leaders to take strong action on climate change. We need to see a fair, aggressive, legally-binding agreement on climate change come out of Paris and we need to see action to keep fossil fuels in the ground. All of these communities are uniting under the message #EarthToParis.

The event will organize participants to create a living message with their bodies by standing as a group spelling out a message to be photographed and sent to COP 21 and shared with the global community.

This event will take place entirely outside so we are encouraging participants to dress warmly for the weather. We’ll have a fire going and hot chocolate brewing to help keep everyone toasty warm. Local musician Becky Law will be performing throughout the event to keep spirits high.

This event is organized by the Yukon Conservation Society, CPAWS Yukon, BYTE, and Yukoners Concerned.

For more information please contact:

Amber Church
CPAWS Yukon
achurch@cpawsyukon.org
867-335-4884

Christina Macdonald
Yukon Conservation Society
ycsed@ycs.yk.ca
867-668-5678

November 4 2015

Court of Appeal upholds integrity of Final Agreements while Sending Peel Back to the Drawing Board

CPAWS Yukon News

Court of Appeal upholds integrity of Final Agreements while Sending the Peel Back to the Drawing Board

Earlier today, Chief Justice Bauman, Madam Justice Smith and Justice Goepel of the Yukon Court of Appeal confirmed the Yukon Government failed to honour its treaty obligations with respect to the Peel Watershed Land Use Plan.

This ruling vindicates arguments advanced by the First Nation of Na-cho Nyäk Dun, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society Yukon Chapter (CPAWS Yukon) and the Yukon Conservation Society (YCS) that land-planning provisions of the Umbrella Final Agreement (UFA) are binding on the Yukon Government. The Court further upheld the trial judge’s finding that the Yukon Government’s Plan for the Peel Watershed is a legal nullity.

With respect to the question of remedy, the Court of Appeal directed that the process should go back to the stage when the Yukon Government’s breach of the Final Agreements began. The Court found that this occurred back in February of 2011.

“We are pleased this judgment confirms what First Nations have been saying all along – our final agreements matter and must be respected,” said Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Chief Roberta Joseph. “However, it is disappointing that the Yukon Government’s failure to appreciate their responsibilities under our UFA means more money and time will be spent on a planning process that should have been completed years ago and that we still lack clarity for the Peel.”

Chief Roger Kyikavichik of the Vuntut Gwitchin wants to see the Peel Land Use Plan through to completion. “This is not finished until we’ve concluded a final land use plan that we can all agree to,” he said. “We must ensure the integrity of this pristine ecosystem is protected for all time. Let’s be clear: we are not against development, but it must be done in an environmentally sensitive way. The water, land, environment, and the animals have to be protected for our children for the future.”

“The judgment of the Court of Appeal represents a major step in guaranteeing that land use planning in the Peel and elsewhere in Yukon proceeds according to the process laid down in the UFA,” said lead lawyer for the respondents, Thomas R. Berger, Q.C.

“However, the respondents are concerned about the Court of Appeal’s direction that, since the Government’s land use plan is of no legal effect, the planning process should go back to the stage (February 21, 2011) when Yukon Government advanced its proposed modifications to the Commission’s Recommended Plan. Justice Veale had held that Yukon Government should be bound by the modifications it proposed back in 2011 and that final consultation on the Commission’s Final Recommended Plan should now proceed. The Court of Appeal has turned the clock back to February 21, 2011, when Yukon Government proposed modifications to the Recommended Plan. We must consider the question of whether sending the matter back to an earlier stage in the process may allow Yukon Government to effectively implement the Yukon Government Plan, a plan which the Court has held is a nullity, by the back door.”

“This decision confirms again what the public has been saying all along, that government’s process was badly flawed,” said CPAWS Yukon Executive Director Gill Cracknell. “The public also deserves better than an order allowing government a redo at enormous expense of time and money to Yukoners.”

“The Appeal Court’s ruling supports our constitutional rights under the UFA, but does little to ensure the Yukon Government respectfully listens to what we have to say,” says First Nation of Na-cho Nyäk Dun Chief Simon Mervyn. “Our trust has been seriously breached and we had hoped the Court would rule more decisively in our favour.”

The respondents and their legal team are carefully considering the Court’s direction that the matter be remitted back to an earlier stage and whether further steps should be taken.

“Support for protecting the Peel Watershed has been growing since day one of this court case,” said Yukon Conservation Society Executive Director Christina Macdonald. “Our numbers are going to continue to grow as we decide on our next steps and work together to protect this land that we love.”

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Media Contacts:

Thomas R. Berger O.C., Q.C: 604-605-5555
Chief Simon Mervyn, First Nation of Na-cho Nyäk Dun, Chief Roberta Joseph, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, and Chief Roger Kyikavichik, Vuntut Gwitchin: via Wayne Potoroka 867-993-7100 Ext 108
Gill Cracknell, CPAWS Yukon: 867-332-8079
Christina Macdonald, Yukon Conservation Society: 867-668-5678

Background:

The plaintiffs launched legal action on January 27, 2014 to force the government of Yukon to implement a land use plan that would protect more than 54,000 square kilometres of wilderness in northern Yukon’s Peel River Watershed from mining and other industrial development. The week of July 7-10, renowned lawyer Thomas R. Berger argued the landmark constitutional case in Yukon Supreme Court in front of a packed house. The case was continued on October 24 to accommodate a deeper discussion focused on remedy. On December 2 Justice Veale delivered his written decision in which he agreed with the plaintiffs that Yukon government had violated the land use planning process laid out in the Umbrella Final Agreement with respect to the Peel Watershed Land Use Plan. He ordered the planning process return to the stage where Yukon government ran it off the rails – the final round of consultation with First Nations and the public. Justice Veale’s order constrained Yukon government to the modifications they previously proposed. On December 30, Yukon government announced they were appealing Justice Veale’s decision. The appeal was heard by the Yukon Court of Appeal on August 20 and 21, 2015.

Find the Peel appeal decision here: http://tinyurl.com/qx837rz

For more background and media resources on the Peel campaign and its history, go here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/a2rkzl0mutgd74c/N_Ao14ZEIp

October 1 2015

Environment Forum to Provide Opportunity for Federal Candidates to Focus on Issues Impacting Yukon’s Environment

CPAWS Yukon News

Environment Forum to Provide Opportunity for Federal Candidates to Focus on Issues Impacting Yukon’s Environment

Media Advisory
October 1, 2015

On Tuesday, October 6th CPAWS Yukon and the Yukon Conservation Society will host a non-partisan environment forum in response to the current federal election campaign.

All four Yukon federal candidates have been invited to participate. To date Melissa Atkinson, Larry Bagnell, and Frank de Jong have all confirmed their attendance. The forum will be moderated by Tara McCarthy.

The first half of the event will see candidates respond to four questions formulated by a consortium of Yukon environmental NGOs. In the second half of the evening the candidates will field questions from the public in attendance at the event. Throughout the evening the public will be encouraged to place their names in a hat if they wish to ask a question. During the period for public questions names will be drawn from the hat. Once an individual’s name is drawn they will be given 30 seconds to ask their environmentally-themed question. At the end of the event each candidate will be given a short time to make some concluding remarks.

The Environment Forum will take place from 7-9 pm on October 6th at the Old Fire Hall. Complimentary coffee and tea will be served.

For more information please contact:
Amber Church
Programs Manager, CPAWS Yukon
867-393-8080 x 2
achurch@cpawsyukon.org

August 25 2015

Peel Watershed supporters braved pouring rain in Water Ceremony for the Peel

CPAWS Yukon News

Peel Watershed supporters braved pouring rain in Water Ceremony for the Peel

August 21, 2015, Whitehorse, Yukon – In pouring rain 200 supporters arrived at the steps to the Yukon Law Court, yesterday, where the Peel Watershed Case is underway, to participate in a one hour long Water Celebration for the Peel.

Elders from the First nation respondents in the case – the First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, and Vuntut Gwich’in First Nation – along with fellow respondents, the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) Yukon Chapter and the Yukon Conservation Society, and public participated in a special ceremony involving the gathering of water collected by supporters from Yukon lakes, rivers and streams that have special meaning to the bearer. During the ceremony these waters were be joined together in support of protection of the Peel Watershed and Justice Veale’s 2014 judgment concerning the region’s land use plan.

Over 350 vials were distributed to members of the public throughout the summer who brought waters from throughout the territory, including the major drainages of the Peel Watershed, to be mingled together during the ceremony.

During the evening BBQ over 300 people came together to witness the closing of the Water Ceremony for the Peel, where the waters were poured into the Yukon River.

Images from the day’s events in support of protecting the Peel, #ProtectPeel can be found here:
• Water Celebration for the Peel https://db.tt/VF8Wmfss
• BBQ evening event and closing of the Water Celebration https://www.dropbox.com/sh/5u9w2acgrrh6zji/AACjMXpCDv26YdGqN0iFrSroa?dl=0

A full recap of the day’s activities can be found here:
https://peelwatershedtrial.wordpress.com/2015/08/21/daily-summary-of-august-20th-peel-appeal/

Court proceedings resume today at 9 am PST and are expected to wrap up at 2pm. Respondent lawyers anticipate it will take 3-4 months before a decision is made.

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Note to Media
•        Higher resolution images are available
•        Photo credit: Tyler Kuhn
•        Social Media: #ProtectPeel

Media Contact:
Kate Rogers, Tartan Group: 604.880.1494 (cell) Kate@tartangroup.ca  