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Celebration of strong, conservation-oriented Peel Watershed Plan recommended by Planning Body
- But it “ain’t over yet”!The Good News:On December 2, 2009, the Peel Watershed Planning Commission released their Recommended Plan for the Peel watershed to the Yukon Government and public. The Commission is authorised under the First Nations Land Claim agreements in the area to research, consult and propose a management plan for the area. The consultations revealed high controversy and not surprising polarity between mining exploration interests and those who want to see the region remain road less and pristine. There is great news to share! The Recommended Plan calls for protection of 80.6% of the Peel Watershed. This is a huge step forward for conservation in the region, and positions the Peel to remain globally significant as a roadless, pristine, wilderness area. A pivotal turning point in the process was a poll conducted by the Tourism Industry Association of the Yukon (TIA) and the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) that showed more than 73% of Yukoners were in favour of significant protection in the watershed. This was an historic “tipping point” in a Territory with a mining legacy. But it is not over yet. The Yukon Government now has to consult with First Nation Governments and respond to the plan. Stay tuned! We may need your help yet to push this over the top! More details on the plan A few important components of the recommended plan: - Special Management Area (SMA) status is recommended for 80% of the Peel Watershed under a variety of protection management tools. No surface access is permitted in these SMAs without a plan amendment.
- The Snake River watershed is recommended for full-on, flat-out protection. The entire Bonnet Plume, Wind, and Hart watersheds are recommended for SMA designations.
- Several other ecologically important areas such as the Turner Lake wetlands are recommended for full protection. We think this will be a big topic with the migratory birds who rely on this area every year.
- Existing mineral claims will continue to exist, even in protected areas, but exploration is limited to air access.
While we would prefer to see the long term importance of the region honored fully by removing existing mineral claims, it is rare in conservation work to feel such a sense of achievement and hope. Our sense of satisfaction comes not only from the very tangible conservation gains in the recommended plan, but also stems from knowing that we got this far the hard way – we slowly built a coalition of voices over time, kept finding more and more common ground, and in the end, more than 73% of Yukoners, and many, many other Canadians agreed with us that significant protection of the Peel was the only way forward. We thank the Planning Commission for their hard work and commitment to moving forward on the vision of sustainable development that is articulated in the Umbrella Final Agreement of the Land Claims. What’s Next?The Recommended Plan now becomes the subject of consultations between representatives of the Yukon and First Nation governments. Of course the public’s continued expression of support for protection remains important as these parties negotiate towards a final plan. It is important at this stage that the Yukon Government is encouraged to accept the strengths in the plan, as a starting point. Two of the affected First Nations continue to call for full protection of the entire watershed, and their wishes need to be reflected in the final plan. Secondly, a moratorium on further mineral staking in areas proposed for protection needs to be imposed now. The Planning Commission has recommended a moratorium, and it is within the Yukon Government’s powers to do this. We can all call upon Premier Dennis Fentie to demonstrate his commitment to the process by halting staking now and avoiding further conflict later. Failure to do so will bring into question whether the Yukon is acting in good faith, and will undermine the planning process mandated by the Yukon’s First Nations Final Agreements. We will continue to work in a very focused and determined manner through 2010, to build on the Recommended Plan. We will coordinate with The Wilderness Tourism Association of the Yukon (WTAY), TIA and CPAWS, other conservation groups, and partners to keep everyone informed as the plan moves forward. We have accomplished a great deal together, as Yukoners and Canadians interested in protecting vast wilderness ecosystems. Momentum for this kind of protection in the Yukon has built over many years, and continues to gather speed towards the realization of protection for a truly big, wild place, the Peel Watershed. We still have a long way to go before we see protection in the Peel accepted and implemented, but we are today standing at a major achievement in our work with these very strong recommendations from the Planning Commission.
Thank you for your support and please watch fur future developments in this campaign and calls to action.
Written with contributions from Gill Cracknell of CPAWS Yukon |
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NAHANNI RIVER ADVENTURESPO Box 31203 Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada Y1A 5P7 Phone (867) 668-3180 | Fax (867) 668-3056 RESERVATION: 1 (800) 297-6927 info@nahanni.com | |  | |  |
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Nahanni River Adventures, Nahanni offers exceptional expeditions by raft and canoe on the great rivers from Alaska to Nunavut including: South Nahanni River, Tatshenshini River, Alsek River, Firth River, Snake River, Wind River, Stikine River, Burnside River, Coppermine River, Horton River, Mountain River, Yukon River, Taku River, Gataga River and Sea Kayaking and whale watching at Point Adolphus, Alaska, over-looking Glacier Bay National Park. Our expeditions encompass Nahanni National Park (South Nahanni River), Kluane National Park (Alsek River), Ivvavik National Park (Firth River), Glacier Bay National Park (Alsek River), Herschel Island Territorial Park (Firth River). Nahanni River Adventures operates in Alaska (United States of America), Yukon Territory, Northwest Territories, Nunavut and British Columbia (Canada). Nahanni.com is the online presence of the company, Nahanni River Adventures Ltd. Nahanni River Adventures works with the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society to ensure the environmental integrity of our wild places. Neil Hartling, founder of Nahanni River Adventures, is also the author of: Nahanni, River of Gold...River of Dreams. Alaska to Nunavut - The Great Rivers. Nahanni River Guide. These books may all be purchased through Nahanni.com. Common misspellings of the name are Nahani, Nahannie, Nahanie, Nahoni, Nahonni.
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