Aklavik Community Conservation Plan
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AKLAVIK INUVIALUIT COMMUNITY CONSERVATION PLAN AKAQVIKMIUT NUNAMIKINI NUNUTAILIVIKAUTINICH A PLAN FOR THE CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND LANDS WITHIN THE INUVIALUIT SETTLEMENT REGION IN THE VICINITY OF AKLAVIK, NORTHWEST TERRITORIES Prepared by The Aklavik Hunters and Trappers Committee, Aklavik Community Corporation, the Wildlife Management Advisory Council (NWT), the Fisheries Joint Management Committee and the Joint Secretariat 2016 We thank the elders who made this possible by telling us about the Inuvialuit lifestyle of long ago which in many ways continues today. This plan will help preserve our lifestyle into the future. June 2000 “Conservation means the protection of wildlife and their land and also the keeping of traditional subsistence lifestyle. Wise planning based on traditional and scientific knowledge should be used to conserve and manage wildlife and wildlife habitat.” -Mervin Joe and Joe Joe Benoit Aklavik, 1993 2016 The 2016 Aklavik Inuvialuit Community Conservation Plan has been prepared in consultation with the Inuvialuit Community in Aklavik and Inuvialuit and non-Inuvialuit bodies with an interest in the area. The undersigned representatives hereby adopt this document for the purpose of guiding policy and resource management in the planning area. Dean Arey Larry Carpenter President Chair Aklavik Hunters and Trappers Committee Wildlife Management Advisory Council (NWT) Jordan McLeod Chairperson Lindsay Staples Aklavik Community Corporation Chair Wildlife Management Advisory Council (North Slope) Annie B. Gordon Chairperson Aklavik Inuvialuit Elders Committee Vic Gillman Chair Fisheries Joint Management Committee IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS AND ABBREVIATIONS The following important words and abbreviations have been used in the Community Conservation Plan and are explained below. Community Refers to all the Inuvialuit individuals living in the area and the local organizations that represent them. Those organizations include the Hunters and Trappers Committee, Elders, Community Corporation, Community Education Council and Hamlet. Conservation Is ensuring that if we take caribou, there will be caribou the next year and the year after that. The same for anything else. This applies to all uses of the land: if it is used and enjoyed now, it must be left and preserved so that it will be there for the next year and for future years. Ecosystem Refers to all of the plants and animals in an area, including the air, water and land on which they depend. The parts of the ecosystem are interconnected and influence one another. Food and energy flow through the ecosystem and are returned to it. Successful conservation and management depend on the recognition that changing one part of the ecosystem may affect the other parts. AHTC - Aklavik Hunters and Trappers Committee ACC - Aklavik Community Corporation CWS - Canadian Wildlife Service DFO - Department of Fisheries and Oceans DoL – Department of Lands, GNWT DOT - Department of Transportation ENR - Department of Environment and Natural Resources, GNWT EIRB - Environmental Impact Review Board EISC - Environmental Impact Screening Committee FJMC - Fisheries Joint Management Committee GNWT - Government of the Northwest Territories GRRB - Gwich’in Renewable Resource Board GTC - Gwich’in Tribal Council HTC - Hunters and Trappers Committee IFA - Inuvialuit Final Agreement IGC - Inuvialuit Game Council ILA - Inuvialuit Land Administration IRC - Inuvialuit Regional Corporation ISR - Inuvialuit Settlement Region ITH – Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk Highway ITI – Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment, GNWT NWT - Northwest Territories PWNHC - Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre RRC - Renewable Resource Committee (Gwich’in) WMAC (NS) - Wildlife Management Advisory Council (North Slope) WMAC (NWT) - Wildlife Management Advisory Council (Northwest Territories) YTG - Yukon Territorial Government Aklavik Inuvialuit Community Conservation Plan - 2016 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................................................... 7 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................ 11 1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................... 12 1.1 A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE AKLAVIK AREA ................................................................ 15 1.2 INUVIALUIT FINAL AGREEMENT AND RENEWABLE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 17 1.2.1 Inuvialuit Final Agreement .................................................................................... 17 1.2.2 Wildlife Management Advisory Councils (NWT and North Slope) and Fisheries Joint Management Committee ............................................................... 17 1.2.3 Inuvialuit Game Council and Hunters and Trappers Committees .......................... 17 1.2.4 Inuvialuit Land Administration ............................................................................... 17 1.2.5 Environmental Impact Screening Committee and Environmental Impact Review Board .................................................................... 18 1.3 GWICH’IN TRANSBOUNDARY ISSUES .................................................................... 18 2 COMMUNITY VALUES ..................................................................................................... 19 3 GOALS ............................................................................................................................. 19 4 SPECIAL AREAS AND RECOMMENDED LAND USE PRACTICES FOR THE PLANNING AREA ....................................................................................................................................... 21 4.1 AKLAVIK SUBREGION - SPECIAL DESIGNATED LANDS ......................................... 22 4.1.1 General Land Use Guidelines ............................................................................... 85 4.2 INUVIALUIT COMMUNITY PROCESS FOR LAND USE DECISIONS .......................... 85 4.3 CUMULATIVE IMPACTS MANAGEMENT................................................................... 86 4.4 ENVIRONMENTAL SCREENING AND REVIEW ......................................................... 87 4.4.1 Recommendations ............................................................................................... 87 5 EDUCATION, TRAINING AND INFORMATION EXCHANGE .......................................... 88 6 WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AND RESEARCH ................................................................. 89 6.1 GENERAL GUIDELINES............................................................................................. 90 6.2 SUBSISTENCE AND COMMERCIAL HARVESTING - GENERAL GUIDELINES ......... 92 6.3 TOURISM GUIDELINES (NWT) .................................................................................. 92 6.4 SPECIES CONSERVATION SUMMARIES ................................................................. 93 Beaver ............................................................................................................................ 95 Black Bear ...................................................................................................................... 96 Caribou .......................................................................................................................... 97 Dall's Sheep ................................................................................................................. 100 Foxes ........................................................................................................................... 102 Grizzly Bear ................................................................................................................. 102 Lynx.............................................................................................................................. 104 Marten.......................................................................................................................... 106 Mink ............................................................................................................................. 107 Muskox ........................................................................................................................ 110 Muskrat ........................................................................................................................ 112 Polar Bear .................................................................................................................... 113 Snowshoe Hare or Rabbit ............................................................................................ 116 Wolf ............................................................................................................................. 117 Wolverine ..................................................................................................................... 118 Beluga Whale ............................................................................................................... 119 Bowhead Whale ........................................................................................................... 126 6 Aklavik Inuvialuit Community Conservation Plan - 2016 Seals ............................................................................................................................ 130 Mammals Species List ................................................................................................. 136 Ducks