No – the Supreme Court ordered the Yukon government to go back and consult on the Final Recommended Plan. This is what should have happened years ago, before the previous Yukon government derailed the land use planning process by introducing its own plan at the last minute. These consultations occurred in the fall of 2018, and after final negotiations between the Yukon government and First Nations, the Peel Land Use Plan was finalized in 2019. 

The Final Recommended Plan from the Peel Watershed Planning Commission was the culmination of seven years of democratic consultation, with input from governments, industry, other stakeholders and the public. It provides for 55% permanent protection and 25% interim protection of the Peel Watershed (where roads and mining would not be permitted), with the remaining 20% available for development. 

The plan adopted by the Yukon government was developed behind closed doors, without input from the First Nations or the public, and provided for at most 29% protection, with over 71% of the watershed open to development.

The Final Recommended Plan was a compromise and allows for 20% of the region to be open to mining and development. We feel that this is the upper limit of development that can happen in the Peel without severely jeopardizing the ecological integrity of the region, and it was also a compromise for the First Nations, who originally wanted 100% protection. The Peel is a truly special region and one of the few remaining unroaded areas in North America. Once development happens, the effects on the environment cannot be undone. Part of the rationale for protection is leaving choices for future generations. 

Yes. For the wildlife that depend on the Peel, roads fragment their habitat and make natural behaviour and survival more difficult. Roads drastically transform the wilderness and are often a gateway to more and more development, resource extraction, and land disturbance. There are endless examples from across Canada and the world of population decline being linked to habitat loss caused by roads. 

With the North warming up faster than almost anywhere else on Earth, the Peel could be a refuge for species threatened by climate change. As a diverse and intact ecosystem, it could provide conditions that would allow wildlife and biodiversity to adapt to the effects of climate change by moving south to north. This is why the Peel is the northern anchor of the Yellowstone-to-Yukon initiative. Natural landscapes also act as carbon sinks, storing carbon dioxide in trees, soil, and permafrost. In short, we need nature to reduce emissions and buffer the impacts of climate change.   

Mining is an important part of the Yukon economy, and there are ways that it can be done responsibly, but not all areas of the Yukon should be open to mining, particularly where there are significant ecological and cultural values that would be damaged. The Yukon also has untapped potential in areas of wilderness tourism, and the Peel could be an example of how local communities can benefit from more sustainable and conservation-based economic development.