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Peel Watershed Photo Exhibit comes to Whitehorse

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July 30, 2018, Whitehorse – The Peel Watershed Portrait Exhibit is showing at the Yukon Arts Centre from August 1-30, with an opening reception from 5-7 pm on August 1. The exhibit is a collaboration between the Yukon Conservation Society, CPAWS Yukon, the First Nation of Na Cho Nyäk Dün, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation and the Teetl’it Gwich’in Council, and features some of the many people whose lives are intertwined with the Peel Watershed.

For the exhibit, interviews and photoshoots were conducted in the four communities surrounding the Peel Watershed – Mayo, Dawson City, Old Crow, and Teetl’it Zheh (Fort McPherson) – and Whitehorse. After being shown in Ottawa and the Peel communities, the exhibit is now coming to Whitehorse. It features short excerpts from individual interviews alongside photographs by Cathie Archbould and Peter Mather.

“Not many people understand the importance of the land, ecosystems, and the animals on humanity’s well-being. The people of the North live and breathe this reality,” said Cathie Archbould, the exhibit’s portrait photographer.

“It is pretty hard to go into the Peel and not come back with special images,” said Peter Mather, the exhibit’s landscape photographer. “My hope is always that my work will inspire people from all walks of life to visit and cherish the watershed, its adventures and its people.”

The Peel Watershed is within the traditional territories of the First Nation of Na Cho Nyäk Dün, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation and the Teetl’it Gwich’in Council in the neighbouring Northwest Territories. For generations, these First Nations have relied on the watershed for both physical and cultural sustenance. The exhibit highlights some of the many people who care for the land and have fought to protect it.

In recent years, the watershed’s future has been at stake during a lengthy legal battle over the land use planning process. In 2017, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the Yukon government must complete meaningful final consultations on a land use plan that protects 80% of the watershed. Since that decisive ruling, the Peel Watershed Planning Commission’s Final Recommended Plan has been under review by the Yukon government. Yukoners will have the opportunity to comment on the final plan during the final consultation period, which is expected to take place in the coming months. Dates have not yet been announced.

The Whitehorse showing of the exhibit is dedicated to the memory of CPAWS Yukon’s founding Executive Director, Juri Peepre. Juri was the driving force behind the early public campaign to protect the Peel Watershed and his legacy will live on through the protection of the lands that he loved so much.

This exhibition is also meant to express eternal gratitude to everyone from the Yukon, Northwest Territories and around the world who has poured passion, time and energy into protecting the Peel Watershed – especially the people of Na Cho Nyäk Dün, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation and the Teetl’it Gwich’in Council.

The Peel Watershed Portrait Exhibit is free to the public and open Monday to Friday 10 am to 5 pm, Saturdays 12 pm to 5 pm, August 1-30. Yukoners are encouraged to view the exhibit all month and share their own stories and images on Facebook and Twitter using the hashtag #ProtectPeel.

 

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Media Contacts:

Julia Duchesne, Yukon Conservation Society
Outreach & Communications Director
outreach@yukonconservation.org
867-668-5678

Adil Darvesh, CPAWS Yukon
Communications Coordinator
adarvesh@cpawsyukon.org
867-383-8080 x9

www.protectpeel.ca

Annual Parks Report outlines roadmap for meeting land and freshwater protection targets in the Yukon and across Canada

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July 17, 2018, Whitehorse, Yukon – The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) released its annual Parks Report today, What’s Next: Parks and Protected Areas to 2020 and Beyond, which recommends how governments in Canada – federal, provincial, territorial and Indigenous – can work together to almost double our current protected areas, to achieve our international commitment to protect at least 17% of our landscape by 2020, and to plan for the longer-term work needed to reverse the catastrophic and ongoing decline in nature. Canada has the biggest opportunity in a generation to protect nature – and this report provides a roadmap for action.

The commitment by all jurisdictions in Canada to work together to achieve the 2020 protected area target, along with the $1.3 billion investment in conservation in the 2018 federal budget, creates an unprecedented opportunity for Canada to safeguard nature in the spirit of reconciliation between Indigenous governments and Crown governments, and between all peoples in Canada and nature.

“For many Yukoners, the fact that we’re surrounded by wilderness is what makes our home so special,” says Chris Rider, Executive Director of CPAWS Yukon. “Unfortunately, this is something we could lose, because only a fraction of the land is formally protected. The good news is that because we have so many natural spaces, the Yukon has the opportunity to be the leader in protected areas in Canada. That’s something we should aspire to.

Diverse voices across the country are now calling for action on protected areas, and momentum is growing. With 2020 right around the corner, people are asking, “can Canada do this?” “Can our country almost double the protection of our lands and freshwaters in 2 years?” The answer is YES. In the report, CPAWS identifies places in each jurisdiction where a considerable amount of collaborative work has already been done on proposed protected areas.

With the 2020 target fast approaching, CPAWS makes the following recommendations — that federal, provincial, and territorial governments:

  1. Demonstrate their commitment to almost double Canada’s protected areas by publicly announcing the areas they intend to protect by 2020 to contribute to meeting the target;
  2. Develop a western science and Indigenous knowledge-based plan by 2020 for completing an effective network of interconnected protected areas that will act as a foundation for conserving nature in the face of climate change;
  3. Make a clear commitment to adhere to recognized standards for the protection of nature, including those developed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and the Canadian Council on Ecological Areas;
  4. Ensure conservation funding from federal Budget 2018 is allocated primarily to support the creation of new protected areas by federal, provincial, territorial and Indigenous governments and other partners; and
  5. Support Indigenous governments’ work to create Indigenous protected areas.

The report also includes recommendations for key short-term actions in the Yukon, including implementing the Peel River Watershed Land Use Commission’s Final Recommended Plan, and re-establishing the Dawson Land Use Plan.

CPAWS is ready to work with federal, provincial, territorial and Indigenous governments on protecting our most iconic landscapes and the wildlife that call them home.

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Read the report: https://cpawsyukon.org/parks-and-protected-areas-to-2020/

Read the executive summary: https://cpawsyukon.org/whats-next-executive-summary/

Media contact:
Adil Darvesh, Communication Coordinator
adarvesh@cpawsyukon.org
867-393-8080 x9

Background

Canada was the first industrialized country to sign onto the UN’s Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), an international agreement signed by over 195 countries worldwide. In 2010, as a party to the CBD, Canada pledged to take certain actions to safeguard biodiversity, including protecting at least 17% of the country’s lands and inland waters by 2020. Protecting nature is one of the best proven solutions to slowing the biodiversity crisis.

For over 55 years, CPAWS has been working with all levels of government, and other partners across the country to protect more of Canada’s public lands. As the only nationwide charity dedicated solely to the protection of our public lands and water, and with chapters in almost every province and territory across Canada, we are uniquely positioned to help governments protect what nature really needs.

Protected areas are important to conserve wildlife and wilderness, as well as provide clean air and water for all Canadians, store carbon, and play a major role in improving our health and well-being. They also make economic sense. Protected areas around the world generate US$600 billion per year in direct spending, while costing less than US$10 billion per year to manage.

Canadians have made their voices clear: There is no place for oil and gas extraction in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

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OTTAWA (Tuesday, June 19, 2018) — The Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, Yukon Chapter (CPAWS Yukon) and Nature Canada together are making sure the U.S. Government knows there is no place for oil and gas extraction in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Today is the final day of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s public scoping period in advance of its environmental review of oil and gas drilling in the Arctic Refuge. More than 12,000 Canadians have submitted comments and signatures to the U.S. Government, urging the cross-border impacts of oil and gas drilling be addressed.

Every spring the longest land mammal migration on Earth takes place as the Porcupine caribou herd crosses the Yukon and Northwest Territories to give birth in the Arctic Refuge. The Trump administration’s push for oil and gas extraction would strike the heart of these calving grounds, which could have disastrous impacts on the health of the herd and on the Gwich’in communities that rely on caribou for their culture and livelihood.

Quotes:

Dana Tizya-Tramm, Councilor, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation: “From a people that understands resources extremely well by living in the unforgiven environments and climates of the Arctic North, we see the unilateral development of the wellspring of Arctic ecosystems as a significant threat to indigenous peoples, the lands, animals, and our collective futures. It must be known to produce oil and gas from this area can only be done so by manipulating environmental law and trampling human, and indigenous rights.”

Brook Brisson, Senior Staff Attorney at Trustees for Alaska: “Protecting the coastal plain of the Arctic Refuge is of international importance. The Porcupine caribou herd migrates through Canada to return to the coastal plain in Alaska to calve and replenish themselves each year. Borders do not mean anything to their survival, but habitat and protected ecosystems do. American laws recognize the international importance of the wildlife in this region, and international agreements give Canadians an important voice in this process. We will ensure that the laws and agreements within and between our countries are upheld.”

Chris Rider, Executive Director of CPAWS Yukon : “The impacts from oil drilling in the Arctic Refuge would not stop at the U.S. – Canada border. Drilling in the Porcupine caribou herd’s calving grounds could have devastating impacts across Alaska, the Yukon and the Northwest Territories. It’s critical that Canadian’s stand with the Gwich’in and say no to drilling in the Arctic Refuge.”

Graham Saul, Executive Director of Nature Canada: “It is critical we work alongside CPAWS Yukon and the Vuntut Gwitchin to ensure Canadian voices are included in this environmental review. Today’s submission of 12,000 Canadian signatures and comments is an incredible opportunity for Canadians to speak directly to the U.S. government about the serious and irreversible impact oil and gas development would have on one of the last, healthy barren-ground caribou herds on earth. It is Nature Canada’s mission to protect our wildlife areas and countless species that depend on this habitat. We have been doing this for more than 75 years and have helped protect more than 63 million acres of wildlife areas.

Arctic Refuge Background

The Arctic Refuge is home over 200 species of birds, which migrate to six continents and every state in the United States. The Arctic Refuge provides important habitat for polar bears, grizzly bears, wolves and wolverines. It was established by President Eisenhower in 1960 and expanded by President Carter in 1980. In 2017, a provision included in President Trump’s tax overhaul opened parts of the Refuge’s Coastal Plain to oil and gas development.

High-quality images of the Arctic Refuge available for media use:

https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/14m9LLrjivux_uTByUhEDJeatPPnN5g31       

For comment please contact:

Dana Tizya-Tramm
Councilor, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation
(867) 333-4335 (cell)

Adil Darvesh
CPAWS Yukon
867-393-8080 x 9
adarvesh@cpawsyukon.org

Janet Weichel McKenzie
Nature Canada
(613) 808-4642 (cell)
jweichelmckenze@gmail.com

Yukon Conservation Society and CPAWS Yukon call for public comments on Arctic Refuge drilling

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WHITEHORSE, Yukon, June 13,2018 – The Yukon Conservation Society and CPAWS Yukon are joining together and urging the U.S. Government to consider the transboundary impacts of oil and gas extraction in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Now is a critical time for Yukoners to voice their support for the Porcupine caribou herd and the Gwich’in. Less than one week remains before the deadline for public comments in the Bureau of Land Management’s scoping period.

The proposed oil and gas extraction would fall in the heart of the Porcupine caribou herd’s calving grounds, which could have disastrous impacts on the health of the herd and on the Gwich’in communities that rely on caribou for their culture and livelihood. “Caribou are an iconic northern animal and a vital part of Gwich’in life,” says Mike Walton, executive director of YCS. “The United States must consult with Canada and the Gwich’in about drilling the calving grounds. Canadians are concerned about the dangers of pursuing oil in caribou country.”

“The Trump administration is attempting to condense its environmental review into an impossibly short time frame,” says Malkolm Boothroyd of CPAWS Yukon. “We have to demand the most comprehensive review possible, and hold them to account if they try to cut corners.” The coastal plain of the Arctic Refuge was opened for development through a provision included within Trump’s controversial tax bill. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management has begun the environmental review process of oil and gas lease sales, and is nearing the end of its 60-day public scoping period.

The Gwich’in Steering Committee, Sierra Club, Alaska Wilderness League, EarthJustice, Nature Canada, Environment America, and The Wilderness Society are among the organizations campaigning for the Arctic Refuge’s protection. In May, investors managing over $2.5 trillion USD in global assets called on the oil and gas industry to leave the Arctic Refuge alone. Yukoners can add their support at cpawsyukon.org/porcupine-caribou until June 19th or by writing in person at CPAWS Yukon’s Arctic Refuge Open House: Monday June 18th from 4-6pm in the CPAWS Office at 506 Steele Street.

Contacts:

Adil Darvesh
Communications Coordinator
adarvesh@cpawsyukon.org
867-393-8080 x9

Julia Duchesne
Outreach & Communications Director
outreach@yukonconservation.org
867-668-5678

References:
[1] Tax Cuts and Jobs Act: Title II, Section 20001:
https://www.congress.gov/115/bills/hr1/BILLS-115hr1enr.pdf

[2] U.S. Bureau of Land Management; Coastal Plain Environmental Impact Statement
https://www.blm.gov/programs/planning-and-nepa/plans-in-development/alaska/coastal-plain-eis

[3] National Committee says barren-ground caribou are threatened; Yukon News
 https://www.yukon-news.com/news/national-committee-says-barren-ground-caribou-are-threatened/

[4] Species at Risk Public Registry: Caribou Barren-ground population; COSEWIC
 http://www.registrelep-sararegistry.gc.ca/species/speciesDetails_e.cfm?sid=1341

[5] Effects of Petroleum Development on Terrain Preferences of Calving Caribou; Arctic
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/c4b2/4362c9cf4af2aeb42fce651422aa8a3b88c7.pdf

[6] Investors urge fossil fuel firms to shun Trump’s arctic drilling plans; The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/may/14/investors-urge-fossil-fuel-firms-shun-trump-arctic-drilling-plans-alaskan-wilderness

U.S. government barrels forward to open Canadian caribou herd’s calving grounds to drilling

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Whitehorse, Yukon, April 19th, 2018 – Canadians have just been given a chance to speak directly to the U.S. Government about its reckless plan to allow oil and gas development in the birthing grounds of an international barren-ground caribou herd.

The Porcupine caribou herd undergoes the longest land-mammal migration on earth, beginning in their calving grounds in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, then travelling into the Yukon and Northwest Territories. Gwich’in communities have placed themselves strategically along this herd’s migration routes in order to sustain themselves from this seasonal cycle. They call the calving grounds in the Arctic Refuge “Iizhik Gwats’an Gwandaii Goodlit,” which translates roughly to “The Sacred Place Where Life Begins.”

Last fall, the Trump Administration made international news by putting this globally significant herd — one of the last healthy barren-ground herds left in North America — in jeopardy when U.S. Congress snuck a provision to drill in the Arctic Refuge into an unrelated federal tax bill.

The Vuntut Gwitchin in Old Crow, Yukon, have been fighting for the past four decades to keep development out of the Porcupine caribou’s caving grounds. Though it happened without proper consultation or debate, the passing of this provision marked the first legal step towards peeling back longstanding protections of the Arctic Refuge.

Today, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management issued a Notice of Intent, which initiates a scoping period for a mandatory environmental review of this decision. The bureau will be collecting public comments from both Americans and Canadians for the next 60 days. Canadians now have the chance to speak directly to the U.S. government about how this oil and gas development would have an impact on our country. 

“This is a deeply Canadian issue,” said Chris Rider, Executive Director of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS), Yukon Chapter. “Disturbing this fragile ecosystem could have a disastrous effect on the health of the Porcupine caribou herd and the Gwich’in. We need to tell the Trump administration that the only option at this point is simple: stop. Oil and gas development has no place in the heart of the Porcupine Caribou’s calving grounds”

Caribou are incredibly sensitive to light and sound, and any construction in their calving grounds — during one of the most vulnerable phases of their lives —could lead them to abandon the area altogether. The Porcupine caribou have been highlighted as a beacon of hope in the midst of sharp declines by other barren-ground herds across the Canada.3

For the Gwich’in, who rely on the caribou as a main food source, this is an essential food security and human rights issue.

“The Gwitchin’s timeless relationship with the caribou has secured our existence to this day, a relationship that we hold in high regard and with the deepest of respect. The needless threat of developing the Porcupine Caribou Herd’s calving grounds on the coastal plain of Alaska has now elevated this issue to involve all of North America. It is not just the Gwich’in or indigenous peoples’ loss, but all of North America’s last healthy caribou herd whose future is now in question. What does this mean for our collective futures when we no longer show respect for the foundations of our existence? This is a day that signals to the Gwich’in of the northern arctic that our knowledge from before written history and our warnings about the stability of arctic ecosystems are disregarded by US leadership. It is our future generations’ right to continue to enjoy this life-giving relationship with the caribou as we have as the first peoples of these lands. Heed the call, stand with the Gwich’in for what is right, we must each ask ourselves what is more important to us, life, or oil.” – Dana Tizya-Tramm, Councillor, Vuntut Gwitchin Government

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management has said they plan to rush through the environmental review process for the lease sale in just over a year. Using a hurried, predetermined plan to complete this process is incompatible with protecting the ecological integrity of the Arctic Refuge.

“By pushing for a lease sale next year, the administration is admitting that they have no intention of seriously evaluating the negative impacts of oil development on wildlife and these wild lands, which science tells us are significant,” said Jamie Williams, president of The Wilderness Society, a leading American non-profit land conservation organization that CPAWS Yukon is working with on this issue. “The Wilderness Society remains opposed to opening the Arctic Refuge coastal plain to drilling. Local communities and the public’s concerns should be fairly considered and addressed. Americans should be outraged at what is being done to the crown jewel of their National Wildlife Refuge System.”

This scoping period is the first phase of that environmental review process. The information gathered during this comment period must inform what will be reviewed as part of the Environmental Impact Statement on the proposed lease sale.
CPAWS Yukon stands with the Gwich’in as they continue to fight for the land that has sustained them for millennia. For more information read our backgrounder on the scoping period, and visit our campaign page.


Media Contact:
Adil Darvesh
1-867-393-8080 ext.9
adarvesh@cpawsyukon.org

A historic investment in conservation in Federal Budget 2018

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Whitehorse, Yukon, Feb. 27, 2018 – CPAWS Yukon applauds today’s announcement of $1.3 billion dollars of new federal funding over five years to protect Canada’s land, ocean and wildlife. This unprecedented investment will support Canada’s efforts to achieve its commitment to protect at least 17% of our land and 10% of our ocean by 2020, delivering on the Prime Minister’s promise that Canada will achieve and substantially exceed this target in the coming years.

“The federal government’s announcement today that they are investing over a billion dollars in conservation is truly a game changer,” said Chris Rider, CPAWS Yukon’s Executive Director. “It will provide Yukon Government and Yukon First Nations with the financial resources to ensure the ecological integrity of the Yukon’s wilderness.”

Highlights of Federal Budget 2018 conservation investments include:

• $500 million over five years for a new $1 Billion “Nature Fund” to support conservation
partnerships and which will leverage funding from other government and non-governmental
sources;
• $800 million over five years to support:
–  New federal protected areas
–  Increased capacity for national park management
–  Increased capacity to protect species at risk
– Funding to establish a coordinated network of conservation areas working with provincial, territorial and Indigenous partners.

For the Yukon, this means:

• The Yukon government will receive the support it needs to invest in new parks and protected areas, including those identified in the Peel Watershed Final Recommended Plan
• New funding is available to support Yukon Government and the First Nation governments as they work to bring Land Use Planning back on track
• First Nations governments will have access to funds to support their own work on wilderness protection in their traditional territory

As the details of this new funding becomes clear, CPAWS Yukon hopes to see more information about possibilities for Indigenous protected areas and Indigenous guardian programs.

For the first time, the federal budget not only allocates funding for federal action on nature conservation but also includes significant support for the Yukon government and First Nation governments’ work to establish more protected areas. This cost-shared model is similar to the approach used to deliver on other shared priorities in Canada, such as infrastructure, climate change mitigation, and health care.

CPAWS Yukon deeply appreciates the efforts of many thousands of Canadians who wrote to the Finance Minister, and of the 116 parliamentarians – including Yukon MP Larry Bagnell –  who signed an open letter supporting this historic funding.

To arrange interviews or for further information please contact: Nadine Sander-Green (867-393-8080 ext. 9 or nsander-green@cpawsyukon.org) or Chris Rider (867-393-8080 ext. 4 or crider@cpawsyukon.org)

Celebration Friday, February 2nd for Supreme Court Peel Victory

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To mark the historic Supreme Court of Canada victory for the Peel Watershed a celebration will be held at the Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre on Friday, February 2 from 4:30 pm to 11: 00 pm. The event will pay tribute to the decades of hard work so many Yukoners have put into protecting the watershed and highlight the significance of the December 1st 2017 landmark, unanimous Supreme Court judgement.

The celebration consists of three sections (see below) and media are welcome to attend and cover the event. The exception to this is the story sharing circle, which will have no recording of any kind.

Speeches will take place after dinner, around 7:30 pm. Speakers include:
• Chief Roberta Joseph (Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation)
• Chief Simon Mervyn (First Nation of Na Cho Nyäk Dän)
• Chief Bruce Charlie (Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation)
• Christina Macdonald (Yukon Conservation Society)
• Chris Rider (Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, Yukon Chapter)
• Thomas Berger (O.C., O.B.C, Q.C.)
• The Hon. Pauline Frost (Minister of Environment, Yukon Government)
• Chief Wanda Pascal (Tetlit Gwich’in Council)
• President Bobbie Jo Greenland-Morgan (Gwich’in Tribal Council)

Event Schedule: 

4:30 pm– 7:00 pm: Fire lighting, water ceremony and story sharing circle*

7:00 pm – 9:00 pm: Buffet dinner and speeches

9:00 pm – 11:00 pm: Live music and dancing

*A gathering to share stories, memories and reflections of the Peel Watershed. Participants will each have a short period of time to speak. Everyone is welcome.

Full event details here: http://protectpeel.ca/news/peel-watershed-celebration

Please feel free to contact Nadine Sander-Green (nsandergreen@cpawsyukon.org or 867-393 8080 ext. 9) if you have any questions or would like to set up an interview.

Landmark Supreme Court decision is a victory for First Nations and environmental groups EN/FR

December 1, 2017 — Ottawa, ON — Yukon First Nations and environmental groups have won a landmark Supreme Court case. The judgment released today upholds a land use plan that protects the majority of the Peel Watershed in northeastern Yukon. It’s a massive victory for Yukon First Nations and cause for environmental celebration on a global scale.

The court was asked to rule on two points:

-The correct remedy for the Yukon government’s derailment of the land use planning process.
– Whether parties to a land use planning process can reject a recommended plan at the final stage in the planning process.

In a unanimous decision, the highest court in Canada ruled that the Yukon government must complete meaningful final consultations on a land use plan that protects 80% of the pristine watershed. This comes after the Yukon government, under previous leadership, derailed the planning process, forcing through its own agenda to industrialize 71% of the Peel and betraying its constitutional obligations. The ruling sets a precedent for the future of land use planning in the territory, ensuring the integrity of First Nations Final Agreements is upheld and Yukon is working together in the spirit of reconciliation.

The court did not rule on the Yukon government’s right to reject a land use plan. The ruling does provide guidance that limits the Yukon government’s ability to modify or reject a plan at the final stage of the process.

The Peel Watershed is one of the largest unspoiled natural areas in North America. The 68,000 km2 of rugged wilderness, larger than Nova Scotia, lies within the traditional territories of three Yukon First Nations — Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation, the First Nation of Na Cho Nyäk Dän, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation — as well as the Tetlit Gwich’in in the neighbouring Northwest Territories, who have relied on the watershed for physical and cultural nourishment for millennia.

Today’s ruling is the culmination of a three-year legal battle between a coalition of the affected Yukon First Nations, who partnered with the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, Yukon Chapter (CPAWS Yukon) and the Yukon Conservation Society (YCS) to take Yukon government to court over its breach of the First Nations Final Agreements during the land use planning process.

Although the new Yukon government has promised to accept the Final Recommended Plan, which protects 80% of the watershed, today’s ruling sets a precedent for how modern treaties will be interpreted across Canada for decades to come.

Quotes

“For many years, we’ve been on a path to hold the Yukon Government accountable for promises made during the land claims process. We’ve been working hard towards protecting an area valuable to our First Nations people and so many other Yukoners. I am extremely pleased to be finally arriving on a path of certainty. The Supreme Court of Canada has upheld our treaty agreements and this is the outcome we were hoping for. This is a victory for our modern-day treaties and the collaborative planning processes promised for Land Use Planning. We look forward to working with the present government on the next steps outlined by the court.”

Chief Roberta Joseph, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation

“I want to thank Yukoners and Canadians for all the support in protecting the integrity of our Final Agreements. The agreements were designed for us to protect the environment, and now we will work in unity, for the animals, the land and the people. As we move forward, we hope that Canadians and Yukoners will plan for the betterment of humanity. I’m looking forwards to coming home to celebrate.”

Chief Simon Mervyn, First Nation of Na Cho Nyäk Dän

“We have always been responsible stewards of our Traditional Territory even in the face of adversity and uncertainty. We are pleased that the Court agrees that the path towards reconciliation requires honourable implementation of the spirit and intent of our Final Agreements.”

Chief Bruce Charlie, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation

“Today is an incredible day for Canada’s wilderness! Thanks to the Supreme Court of Canada’s ruling, the future of this extraordinary landscape now looks much brighter. We’re grateful that future generations will be able to enjoy the land as we do today, and that the wildlife that thrives in the Peel Watershed will continue to have a home.”

– Chris Rider, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, Yukon Chapter

“The land use planning process, negotiated in modern-day treaties, brought people together for a common goal — protection of the sacred Peel Watershed — and allowed us to stop a government gone off the rails. It is a vital democratic process that must be defended. And that is what we have accomplished today.”

Christina Macdonald, Yukon Conservation Society

Background

The Peel Watershed is the northern anchor for the Yellowstone to Yukon conservation corridor, providing increasingly crucial habitats to iconic and rare species as climate change and habitat loss threaten North American wildlife.

A seven-year planning process, laid out in the land claims agreements signed between Yukon First Nations and the federal and territorial governments, had produced a Final Recommended Plan to keep 80% of the Peel Watershed off-limits to roads and industry. However, in 2014, the Yukon government rejected this plan in favour of its own plan to open up over 71% of the watershed to roads, mining and drilling. This move derailed the land use planning process that is specified in Yukon First Nation Final Agreements.

This sparked a three-year legal battle between the coalition of affected First Nations and environmental groups, against Yukon government over the future of the Peel Watershed and the integrity of land use planning provisions in the Final Agreements. The case was initially heard by the Supreme Court of Yukon in 2014 and then again by the Court of Appeal of Yukon in 2015. The interpretation of Chapter 11 of the Final Agreements is central to the case. Both Yukon courts found that the Government of Yukon failed to honour its obligations under these agreements.

Where the courts differed was on the remedy for Yukon government’s breach of process. The Supreme Court of Yukon ordered that the land use planning process should be returned to the stage of final consultation with the First Nations and affected communities. The ruling also prevented the Yukon government from introducing new modifications to the Final Recommended Plan. However, the Court of Appeal of Yukon ordered that the process should be sent back to an earlier stage of consultation, which would allow the government to advance entirely new modifications to the Plan and unwind years of progress. The Court of Appeal also ruled the government has the right, at the end of the day, to reject the entire Peel Watershed Final Recommended Plan.

Renowned Indigenous rights lawyer, Thomas Berger, represented the First Nations and environmental groups at the Supreme Court on March 22 of this year.

Media Contacts:

Heather Badenoch at heather@villagepr.ca, 613-859-8232

Nadine Sander-Green at nsander-green@cpawsyukon.org, 867-335-9758

Julia Duchesne at outreach@yukonconservation.org, 250-507-14

 

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Décision historique de la Cour suprême, victoire pour les Premières nations et les groupes environnementaux.

La décision unanime de conserver le plan de protection du bassin hydrographique de la rivière Peel crée un précédent sur la manière dont les traités modernes seront interprétés à l’échelle du Canada.

OTTAWA, ON (1er décembre 2017) – Les Premières nations du Yukon et les groupes environnementaux ont remporté une victoire historique devant la Cour suprême. Grâce à la décision rendue aujourd’hui, le plan d’aménagement du territoire protégeant la majorité du bassin de la Peel dans le nord-est du Yukon sera conservé. Il s’agit d’une victoire imposante pour les Premières nations, et cette décision sera célébrée à l’échelle mondiale.

La Cour avait été invitée à statuer sur les deux points suivants : 

La façon adéquate de remédier au déraillement du processus de planification de l’aménagement du territoire.
La possibilité ou non pour les parties impliquées dans un processus de planification d’aménagement du territoire de recommander un plan au stade final de la planification.

Dans une décision unanime, le plus haut tribunal du Canada a conclu que le gouvernement du Yukon devait mener à terme les consultations finales pertinentes dans le dossier d’un plan d’aménagement du territoire visant à conserver à l’état naturel 80 % du bassin hydrographique. Cette décision survient après que le gouvernement du Yukon, sous l’administration antérieure, avait fait dérailler le processus de planification et imposé son propre programme d’industrialiser 71 % du bassin de la Peel, bafouant de ce fait ses obligations constitutionnelles. Elle constitue un précédent pour la planification future de l’aménagement du territoire, et assure la protection de l’intégrité des accords définitifs des Premières nations en plus de faire en sorte que le Yukon adhère à l’esprit de réconciliation.

La Cour n’a pas statué sur le droit du gouvernement du Yukon de rejeter le plan d’aménagement du territoire. La décision procure des lignes directrices qui limitent le pouvoir du gouvernement du Yukon de modifier ou de rejeter un plan au stade final du processus.

Le bassin de la Peel constitue le plus vaste territoire naturel intact de toute l’Amérique du Nord. Il couvre 68 000 km2 d’habitats sauvages, une superficie plus importante que celle de la Nouvelle-Écosse, et s’étend sur les territoires traditionnels de trois Premières nations du Yukon — Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, Na Cho Nyäk Dän et Vuntut Gwitchin — ainsi que d’une autre des Territoires du Nord-Ouest, Tetlit Gwich’in, qui, depuis des millénaires, dépend de ce bassin hydrographique pour ses besoins physiques et culturels. 

La décision rendue aujourd’hui représente le point culminant de trois années de lutte judiciaire opposant la collation composée des Premières nations du Yukon affectées, alliées à la Société pour la nature et les parcs du Canada, de la section Yukon de la SNAP (CPAWS Yukon) et de la Yukon Conservation Society (YCS) au gouvernement du Yukon. La collation dénonçait le fait que le gouvernement ne respectait pas les accords définitifs des Premières nations durant le processus d’aménagement du territoire.

Bien que le nouveau gouvernement du Yukon a promis d’accepter le plan final recommandé – la protection du 80 % du bassin – la décision rendue aujourd’hui crée un précédent sur la manière dont les traités modernes seront interprétés à l’échelle du Canada durant les décennies à venir.

Citations

« Durant plusieurs années, nous avons lutté pour que le gouvernement respecte les promesses faites durant le processus de revendications territoriales. Nous avons travaillé fort pour protéger un territoire précieux aux peuples des Premières nations et à d’innombrables Yukonnais. Je suis extrêmement heureuse de constater que nous sommes enfin sur la voie de la certitude. La Cour suprême du Canada a imposé le respect de nos accords de traités, et c’est la décision que nous recherchions. Cela représente une victoire pour nos traités modernes et pour les processus de planification collaborative inhérents à l’aménagement du territoire. Nous avons hâte d’entamer avec l’actuel gouvernement les prochaines étapes mises de l’avant par la Cour. »

Chef Roberta Joseph, Première nation de Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in

Je veux remercier les Yukonnais et les Canadiens d’avoir appuyé la préservation de l’intégrité de nos accords définitifs. Ces accords ont été conçus pour protéger l’environnement, et c’est maintenant dans l’unité que nous conserverons les animaux, le territoire et les gens. Alors que nous poursuivons notre travail, nous espérons que les Canadiens et les Yukonnais parviendront à améliorer la situation de l’humanité. Je me réjouis de rentrer à la maison pour célébrer. »

Chef Simon Mervyn, Première nation de Na Cho Nyäk Dän

« Nous avons toujours été des gardiens responsables de nos territoires traditionnels devant l’adversité et l’incertitude. Nous sommes heureux que la Cour reconnaisse que pour s’engager sur la voie de la réconciliation, il faut appliquer de manière honorable l’esprit et l’intention de nos accords définitifs. »

Chef Bruce Charlie, Première nation de Vuntut Gwitchin

« Aujourd’hui est une journée incroyable pour les territoires naturels du Canada ! Grâce à la décision de la Cour suprême, l’avenir de ce paysage extraordinaire est maintenant plus reluisant. Nous sommes heureux que les générations futures puissent profiter du territoire, comme nous le faisons aujourd’hui, et que la faune du bassin de la Peel puisse continuer à y prospérer. »

– Chris Rider, Société pour la nature et les parcs du Canada, section Yukon

« Le processus de planification de l’aménagement du territoire, négocié à l’aide de traités modernes, a réuni les gens dans un but commun – la protection du bassin sacré de la Peel – empêchant ainsi le gouvernement de dérailler. Il s’agit d’un processus démocratique vital qui doit être défendu. Voilà ce que nous avons accompli aujourd’hui. »

Christina Macdonald, Yukon Conservation Society

Contexte

Le bassin de la Peel couvre la partie la plus au nord du corridor de conservation qui s’étend de Yellowstone au Yukon. Ce corridor procure des habitats de plus en plus critiques à des espèces rares et emblématiques alors que les changements climatiques et la perte d’habitats menacent la faune nord-américaine. 

À l’issue d’un processus de planification de sept ans exposé dans les accords sur les revendications territoriales signés par les Premières nations du Yukon et les gouvernements fédéral et territorial, un plan d’aménagement final prévoyant la protection de 80 % du bassin de la Peel contre le développement routier et industriel avait été proposé. Pourtant, en 2014, le gouvernement du Yukon a rejeté le plan, ouvrant 71 % du bassin au développement routier, à l’extraction minière et au forage. Ce changement de direction a fait dérailler le processus de plan d’aménagement du territoire prévu dans les accords définitifs des Premières nations du Yukon. 

Ce déraillement a causé une lutte judiciaire de trois ans opposant la collation composée des Premières nations du Yukon affectées et de groupes environnementaux au gouvernement du Yukon au sujet de l’avenir du bassin de la Peel et de l’intégrité des dispositions de l’aménagement du territoire telles que retrouvées dans les accords définitifs. L’affaire a d’abord été portée devant la Cour suprême du Yukon en 2014, pour se rendre en 2015 devant la Cour d’appel du Yukon. L’interprétation du chapitre 11 des ententes définitives a été cruciale lors du jugement. Les deux Cours du Yukon ont conclu que le gouvernement du Yukon n’avait pas respecté ses obligations en vertu de ces ententes.

Les deux Cours diffèrent dans leur jugement au sujet de la manière dont le gouvernement du Yukon doit remédier au non-respect du processus. La Cour suprême du Yukon a ordonné que le processus de planification de l’aménagement du territoire doive être repris au stade de la consultation finale avec les Premières nations et les communautés affectées. La décision a aussi empêché le gouvernement du Yukon d’introduire de nouvelles modifications au plan final recommandé. Quant à elle, la Cour d’appel du Yukon a ordonné que le processus soit renvoyé à un stade de consultation plus précoce, ce qui permettrait au gouvernement d’introduire de toutes nouvelles modifications au plan, minant ainsi le progrès effectué durant des années. La Cour d’appel a aussi statué que le gouvernement avait le droit, au bout du compte, de rejeter le plan final recommandé de l’aménagement du bassin de la Peel dans sa totalité.

Le célèbre avocat en droits autochtones Thomas Berger a représenté les Premières nations et les groupes environnementaux devant la Cour suprême le 22 mars 2017.

Contacts avec la presse :

Heather Badenoch à l’adresse heather@villagepr.ca, 613-859-8232

Nadine Sander-Green à l’adresse nsander-green@cpawsyukon.org, 867-335-9758

Julia Duchesne à l’adresse outreach@yukonconservation.org, 250-507-1453

Porcupine caribou threatened by drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

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October 30th — Whitehorse, Yukon

The birthing grounds of one of North America’s last healthy barren-ground caribou herds are at serious risk. Porcupine caribou are seen as a beacon of hope amidst swift declines of the species across the arctic. With both U.S. Congress and the White House pushing to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling, the health of this herd is now in jeopardy.

Last week the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society Yukon Chapter (CPAWS Yukon) launched a nation-wide petition urging Prime Minister Trudeau to take a stand against the U.S. government’s recent efforts to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, where the caribou give birth every spring. The organization is pressing the public to join forces and speak up against any industrial development in this fragile ecosystem, both for the health of the herd and the Vuntut Gwitchin in Old Crow, who rely on the Porcupine caribou for their very survival. In just a few days the petition has garnered over 4,000 signatures.

“If drilling in the Arctic Refuge is allowed to go ahead, the threat to the north and its people cannot be understated,” said Chris Rider, CPAWS Yukon’s Executive Director. “That’s why it’s so important that Justin Trudeau stands up in solidarity with the Gwitchin on behalf of all Canadians to tell the U.S. that this just cannot happen.”

The Porcupine caribou’s calving grounds on the coastal plains of the wildlife reserve have been at risk before, but with U.S. Congress pushing through a budget bill that advances drilling in the refuge, this is the biggest threat in decades.

Barren-ground caribou have the longest land-mammal migration on earth.  Scientists raised the alarm last year after numbers declined by more than half, with some of the largest herds in decline by over 80 per cent. The Porcupine caribou is the exception. Thanks to a relatively intact range, this herd’s numbers helped give scientists the confidence to designate this species at risk as “threatened” rather than “endangered”.

Caribou are incredibly sensitive to any environmental changes. Any construction in their territory could lead them to abandon their calving grounds altogether. This could have a grave and irreversible impact on the health of the herd and the Vuntut Gwitchin in Old Crow, who have been fighting to protect these sacred birthing grounds for decades.

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Media Contact: Nadine Sander-Green, 867-393-8080 ext.108, nsander-green@cpawsyukon.org

CPAWS National takes federal Minister to court over Boreal Caribou Habitat Protection

April 20, 2017

–Montreal, QC

Today, the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) filed a lawsuit against the federal Minister of the Environment and Climate Change. 

“One requirement of the federal Species at Risk Act is that once critical habitat for a species has been identified, Canada’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change has 180 days to identify whether and where any portion of that habitat remains unprotected in Canada. At that point, and every 6 months until protection is achieved, the Minister must report on the steps being taken to protect that critical habitat,” explains Frédéric Paquin, the lawyer representing CPAWS in court.

The requirement applies to all species, but CPAWS is focusing on boreal woodland caribou. Boreal caribou’s critical habitat extends from Labrador to the Yukon, across 9 provinces and territories, on both federal and non-federal lands.

“Boreal woodland caribou’s critical habitat was identified and publicly posted in October of 2012. Much of the habitat is on non-federal lands. Though we know that much of the boreal caribou critical habitat remains unprotected more than 4 years later, there have been no reports describing what is being done to address any protection gaps,” adds Alain Branchaud, Executive Director of CPAWS Quebec.

CPAWS has been tracking the steps being taken across Canada at the provincial and territorial level to protect boreal caribou habitat since 2013, and remains unimpressed with the speed at which most jurisdictions have advanced.

“There have been glimmers of action, such as in Saskatchewan where the government appears to be taking their job to protect critical habitat seriously, but we believe that most of the critical habitat in Canada is still largely available for industrial development. Meanwhile, boreal caribou’s habitat, the boreal forest, is getting more fragmented, which has been shown to directly lead to their population decline across the country,” says Éric Hébert-Daly, CPAWS’ National Executive Director.

CPAWS insists that this lawsuit is really about implementing the federal Species at Risk Act in a more transparent and accountable manner to avoid going to more draconian measures often associated with the Act, such as critical habitat safety net protection measure.
“There may be places where urgent action to protect habitat is needed,” says Alain, “but in general we think that there is real value in taking a step-wise approach before such decisions are taken. By identifying unprotected habitat, and making it clear what steps are being taken, all governments and stakeholders can more proactively participate in the process of getting those lands protected and get recognition for the actions they are taking. It will also show where there are governments not taking action, which may help identify those places where more help is needed to get the job done.”

“Protecting Boreal woodland caribou habitat is highly beneficial for multiple reasons. By protecting their critical habitat, we are also protecting the habitat needed for many other species that help keep our boreal forests healthy, including the billions of birds that use the boreal as a nursery. When our boreal forests are healthy, Canadians also thrive. Clean air and water, flood mitigation and carbon storage are just a few of the priceless services that this ecosystem provides,” adds Éric.   

CPAWS hope that there will be a quick resolution to the case. “We need to get on with implementation. That is what this lawsuit is about,” says Alain.

For interviews
Please contact media@cpaws.org

About CPAWS
The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) is Canada’s only nationwide charity dedicated solely to the protection of our public land and water, and ensuring our parks are managed to protect the nature within them. In the past 50+ years, we’ve played a lead role in protecting over half a million square kilometres – an area bigger than the entire Yukon Territory! Our vision is to protect at least half of our public land and water so that future generations can experience Canada’s irreplaceable wilderness.

About Frédéric Paquin
Frédéric Paquin is a law professor at the College of Valleyfield, Quebec. He has previously worked as a lawyer at the Department of Justice Canada, and has worked with Quebec environmental groups on a case pertaining to the Western Chorus Frog.

Background
View past Caribou Reports

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