Yukoners overwhelmingly support permanent protection of Peel Watershed
February 27, 2019 (Whitehorse, YT) – CPAWS Yukon and the Yukon Conservation Society (YCS) are pleased to see an overwhelming call for stronger protection in the Peel Regional Land Use Plan What We Heard Report released yesterday.
The report breaks down the 2,674 email, letter, and questionnaire submissions during the final consultations. We are pleased to see that the public has spoken and over 96.4% of people asked for at least the implementation of the Final Recommended Plan (which calls for 55% permanent protection, 25% interim protection). 64.5% of people asked for protection to be stronger than in the Final Recommended Plan.
Over the past 20 years, CPAWS Yukon and YCS have been advocating for permanent protection of this unspoiled landscape that spans over 68,000 km2 – about 14% of the entire Yukon. Home to iconic northern wildlife such as grizzly bears, wolves, moose, caribou, and lynx, the Peel Watershed provides a much needed sanctuary that is integral for plants, animals, and humans to thrive.
The landmark victory at the Supreme Court of Canada in December 2017 (by appellants First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation, CPAWS Yukon, and YCS) provided the public with this opportunity to exercise their right – as laid out in the Umbrella Final Agreement – to help decide the future of this landscape through final consultations on the Final Recommend Plan for the Peel Watershed.
Now that consultations are complete, CPAWS Yukon and YCS hope that Yukon policy- and decision-makers will act on the public desire for a protected Peel Watershed as they finalize the Peel Watershed Land Use Plan.
“We’re thrilled that so many people participated in the final consultations. It’s clear that Yukoners want to see the strongest possible protection for the Peel Watershed, and Yukon government has a great opportunity to show that they’re listening.” – Chris Rider, Executive Director, CPAWS Yukon
“Climate change and industrial development are threats to biodiversity and the health of the land in the Yukon and across the globe. Protecting wildlife and wild places like the Peel Watershed is the key to our shared future.” – Dr. Mike Walton, Executive Director, Yukon Conservation Society
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Contacts
Adil Darvesh, Communications Coordinator, CPAWS Yukon
adarvesh@cpawsyukon.org, 867-393-8080 x9
Julia Duchesne, Outreach and Communications Director, YCS
outreach@yukonconservation.org
Contacts for quotes
David Loeks, Former Chair of the Peel Commission
867-633-5470, loeks@northwestel.net
Kalin Pallett, President of Wilderness Tourism Association of the Yukon (WTAY)
867-335-6469, kalin@eddyline.ca
Donald Reid, Conservation Zoologist – Wildlife Conservation Society Canada
867-456-7556, dreid@wcs.org
Google Drive folder with images
https://drive.google.com/open?