Initial consultation on land use stewardship proposal in north B.C. nears end

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — A consultation on a land use stewardship proposal for an area in northern B.C is closing tomorrow.

The Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship and Kaska First Nations, which include Dease River First Nation, Kwadacha Nation, Liard First Nation and the Ross River Dena Council, released an online survey about the Kaska-BC Land Use Planning (LUP) project to determine the proper land usage in traditional Kaska First Nations area.

Fort Nelson Land and Resource Management Plan (LRMP) areas are covered by the project.

A focal point of the project is the proposed Dene K’éh Kusān Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area (IPCA).

It is a 39,000 square kilometre area that reflects the vision of the Kaska First Nations’ ancestors to steward the lands and waters into the future.

On the LUP’s frequently asked questions document, it says a mineral tenuring pause “for a period of one year” has been set to protect environmental and cultural values in the proposed IPCA area.

This prohibits the registration of new placer and mineral claims and the issuance of new coal licences for one year, but does not apply to existing ones.

The stewardship plan would identify areas to protect and enhance biodiversity, as well as manage zones to promote community economic priorities.

It is based on eight principles: government-to-government relationships; Indigenous rights and Indigenous-led stewardship; engagement; environmental stewardship and economic development; adaptive management and monitoring; legal and policy frameworks; and reconciliation.

“Land use planning supports preservation of cultural values, healthy ecosystems and opportunities for economic activities by setting broad strategic direction for plan areas providing clarity for ‘what’ can occur ‘where’ on land and water,” reads a portion of the land use project’s website.

“It is a transparent and inclusive process that can be modified over time to address changing needs.”

The project’s webpage says it is in “the early stages” of sharing information about the proposal, saying the public survey is “the first opportunity” to provide input into the Kaska-BC LUP.

People have until Friday, August 8th at 4 p.m. to submit their opinions by completing the online survey, which can be found on the project’s website. It says the questionnaire should only take 10 minutes to complete.