World Wildlife Fund Canada welcomes government support of “conservation first” in the Mackenzie Valley

World Wildlife Fund Canada (WWF-Canada) held numerous meetings with key Ministers and their officials in October, urging the federal government to commit this funding to implement the Mackenzie Valley Action Plan as part of the Northwest Territories Protected Areas Strategy. The costs of implementation had been set at $18 million over five years, half of which was the federal government’s share ($1.8 million per year). Bill Carpenter NWT Conservation Director for WWF-Canada, commented that, “Northern communities want the chance to identify and reserve areas important to them now, while they still can. Implementing the Protected Areas Strategy allows communities to take action in advance of development. I am very pleased with today’s announcement and thank all those involved for their tireless efforts to help get to this point, including Stephen Kakfwi, former Premier of the NWT.”

The NWT Protected Areas Strategy is a product of a unique collaboration led by Aboriginal communities, supported by territorial and federal governments, industry and conservation organizations (Ducks Unlimited Canada, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, and WWF-Canada). It makes a major contribution to conserving the boreal forest of Canada, as laid out in the Boreal Forest Conservation Framework. The NWT Protected Areas Strategy and Mackenzie Valley Action Plan provide a vehicle for communities in the North to identify lands with natural and cultural significance that they wish to protect from industrial development.

“This commitment by the federal government means that the other partners to the NWT Protected Areas Strategy can now raise the remaining $9 million we all committed to,” says Monte Hummel, President Emeritus of WWF-Canada. “Now that we have half of the $18 million we need from the federal government, our goal is to ensure that the land which is so important to the people who live there is adequately protected.”

For WWF-Canada, the priority regarding implementing the NWT Protected Areas Strategy has always been “conservation first,” meaning the completion of conservation planning in advance of industrial development. The Rt. Hon. John Turner, a WWF-Canada board member, added, “I congratulate the Paul Martin government for understanding the importance of the conservation first principle. This is a big win for the land and the people of the North.”