A community event was held earlier this week in Lutselk'e, N.W.T. to finalize the agreement.
The Thaidene Nene National Park Reserve is now a reality after over a decade of planning and negotiating.
A community event took place in Lutselk'e, N.W.T. earlier this week to finalize the agreement.
Agreements were made between Parks Canada, the Łutsel K'e Dene First Nation, the Deninu K'ue First Nation, Yellowknives Dene First Nation and the Northwest Territories Government.
The agreement makes the Thaidene Nene a permanently protected area.
The park reserve consists of 26,525 square kilometers of land and encompasses tundra, boreal forest, freshwater ecosystems and habitats of caribou, wolves, birds and fish.
14,305 square kilometers of the park is protected by Parks Canada, while the remaining 12,020 square kilometers is a territorially protected and wildlife conservation area.
The Thaidene Nene National Reserve Park is now also protected by the Lutselk'e Dene First Nation.
This park has been years in the making, dating back to the first proposal of it in the 1970's.
The park proposal faced repeated challenges such as the federal government's screening approach, which passed the legislation for the park before environmental screening process was complete.
Furthermore, the Northwest Territory Métis Nation, the North Slave Métis Alliance, and the Yellowknives Dene First Nation have raised concern over whether the park reserve will impede their rights to trap, hunt, and fish in the area.
Those issues were addressed when legislation was properly screened and when negotiations were made with the First Nations, assuring them that their treaty rights to hunt, trap and fish would not be disrupted. Local First Nations were also included in the agreement.
The federal government plans to provide over $7.9 million dollars to help establish, operate and establish a long-term plan for the park. The federal government's goal is to contribute $40 million to infrastructure over the next 12 years, then $3.4 million each year after that.
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