Contrary to the Yukon government's view, the four First Nations involved in the Peel land use plan say final consultations are not underway - they have not even started. To clarify the confusion, they issued the following news release this week:
There have been conflicting and misleading public statements regarding the process and status of the Peel Watershed Regional Land Use Plan. As parties to the planning process, we feel it’s in the public interest to clarify the status of the plan and the process going forward.
Here is where we presently are in the Peel planning and approval process:
• We have the commission’s final recommended plan.
• Yukon has consulted the public on that plan.
• Yukon recently reported the results of public comments on the plan.
• These comments are being reviewed by the parties—the governments of Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, Nacho Nyak Dun, Vuntut Gwitchin, Gwich’in Tribal Council and Yukon.
The next step, which has not yet begun, is intergovernmental consultation on the plan among the First Nations and the Yukon. The public and intergovernmental consultations will inform the parties’ decisions regarding plan approval and implementation. The First Nations are in communication with Yukon to determine the process and schedule for intergovernmental consultation and plan approval.
We were concerned when Yukon provided only superficial and general comments on the commission’s December 2009 Draft Recommended Plan. Our concerns were heightened when Yukon unilaterally developed and published new plan principles and management tools for the plan after the commission filed its final recommended plan.
These actions do not conform to the letter or intent of land use planning in Yukon, as provided in our final agreements. Nor do they comply with the letters of understanding we developed with Yukon for the Peel planning process. We are in ongoing communication with Yukon in this regard.
We feel the attack on the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society in the premier’s recent budget speech was unfortunate from two perspectives. Firstly, this attack on a public society was not to the standard of public governance we expect in our legislature. Secondly, the implication that CPAWS is the driving force behind protection for the Peel is simply not true.
Our people have used the Peel watershed for thousands of years. For us, the Peel has unparalleled value. Also, the Peel Watershed Regional Land Use Plan comes from our final agreements. While we appreciate CPAWS and others participating in the Peel public review processes, it is our governments that are the parties to the plan. We represent our mandates and interests directly. No one else speaks on behalf of our governments.
We need to get past the highly charged rhetoric in the legislature. We need to return to the business at hand. Specifically, we need to plan and commence intergovernmental consultations in a collaborative manner so we can respectfully consider and ultimately implement the plan. This is the process envisioned in our final agreements and agreed to in our intergovernmental letters of understanding as parties.
“It is disappointing the parties have not maintained a consistent process and reached agreement on the Peel plan to this point”, said Vuntut Gwitchin chief Joe Linklater. “We are trying to engage with Yukon respectfully in the manner set out in our agreements and our ongoing intergovernmental arrangements and we will continue to do so until this option is no longer available.”
“We are approaching the end of a long process mandated by our final agreements,” stated Nacho Nyak Dun chief Ed Champion. “We need to work together in good faith to complete the process, within the spirit and intent of our treaties.”
“We for sure appreciate the overwhelming support of CPAWS and Yukon public”, said Tr’ondëk Hwech’in chief Eddie Taylor, “although the direction we follow when it comes to protecting the Peel comes from our elders and citizens.”
“We’re here for the long term. We rely on the resources in the Peel. This plan will not only protect the Peel. It will protect our people,” said Gwich’in Tribal Council vice-president Norman Snowshoe.
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