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The Nunavut Planning Commission says it accepts the reasons for the rejection of the territory\u2019s land use plan, which has been in the works for nearly two decades.\u00a0<\/p>\n
On Friday, the three signatories \u2014 Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. (NTI) and the territorial and federal governments \u2014 released a 200-page document outlining their reasons for rejecting the recommended draft plan<\/a> which was released in 2023.\u00a0<\/p>\n None of them made themselves available on Monday for comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n As one of the largest plans of its kind in the world, it sets out which areas of the territory are open for development and which are protected. It also tells developers where projects, like mines, will be allowed and under what conditions.\u00a0<\/p>\n This is the fourth draft since work on the plan began in 2007.\u00a0<\/p>\n In a news release Monday, the commission said it recognizes Nunavummiut have waited a long time for an approved land use plan, and it notes the three signatories provided \u201csignificant direction and recommendations\u201d about the need to listen to different regional Inuit perspectives and finding a balance between conservation and economic development opportunities.\u00a0<\/p>\n WATCH | Mining claims continue as world’s largest land use plan in Nunavut remains unsigned: Mining claims continue as world’s largest land use plan in Nunavut remains unsigned<\/p>\n The Nunavut land use plan still hasn\u2019t been signed 19 years after work on it first started. As that process drags on, some Nunavummiut are nervous about the damage being done to their lands. The CBC’s Samuel Wat has that story.Lack of regional differences<\/p>\n The three signatory parties believe the recommended plan\u2019s one-size-fits-all approach fails to consider the distinct challenges facing each of the territory\u2019s three regions.<\/p>\n \u201cDespite repeated requests the commission adopt regional approaches, the commission has opted to apply the same zoning designations over the whole of the Nunavut Settlement Area,\u201d NTI said in its decision.<\/p>\n NTI said it has consistently supported regional caribou protection measures by their respective Inuit associations.<\/p>\n For example, it cited the regular shifts in caribou calving areas in the Kitikmeot region, making the \u201cstatic habitat protection approach questionable.\u201d<\/p>\n In the Baffin region, NTI said the focus is on caribou seasonal habitat needs, but the plan has protections during calving season but none during the winter.<\/p>\n NTI said in all three regions, Inuit associations want to see flexible wildlife protection rules that move with the animals.\u00a0<\/p>\n Recognizing Section 35 rights\u00a0<\/p>\n The \u201coverlays\u201d \u2014 or extra rules or exceptions \u2014 on Inuit-owned lands as detailed in the proposed plan are also untenable for the three signatories, who believe the approach fails to take into account Inuit goals and objectives as required under the Nunavut Agreement.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe fundamental reason for this failure is that the Commission declined to meet and consult with the DIOS (designated Inuit organizations) about the concept of the IOL (Inuit-owned land) overlay before using this approach,\u201d NTI said.\u00a0<\/p>\n The federal government said the commission\u2019s approach to zoning provides for exceptions to some prohibitions, which could pose a burden on Inuit organizations by delaying decisions on appropriate land use to a later date.<\/p>\n They say the plan also affects key caribou habitats for the Ghotelnene K’odt\u012fneh Dene and Athabasca Denes\u0173\u0142in\u00e9 in northern Manitoba and Saskatchewan.\u00a0<\/p>\n The government of Canada said as rights holders under Section 35 of the Constitution Act, the two First Nations should also be consulted on any revisions to the plan\u2019s zoning or requirements.<\/p>\n \u201cThe plan must be interpreted and applied in a way that upholds the Aboriginal and treaty rights of Indigenous peoples\u201d the federal government said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Too much focus on conservation, not enough on development<\/p>\n NTI also criticized what it considers a lack of a \u201cbalanced approach between social development, conservation, and sustainable economic development.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n It said the land use designations mostly focus on enhancing conservation, and there are few terms that address social or economic development.\u00a0<\/p>\n For example, NTI said the Kivalliq and Kitikmeot Inuit associations have requested more support for sustainable mineral economic development in their regions.<\/p>\n The federal government takes issue with a ban on all-season access to projects subject to existing rights protections. It cited the Nunavut Agreement, which states any proposed restrictions on land use must come with \u201cthe least possible impact on undiscovered mineral resources, while taking into account environmental and social objectives.\u201d<\/p>\n It takes issue with a provision that does not \u201cpermit the carrying out of \u2018permanent all-season linear infrastructure\u2019 where prohibited \u2018outside the footprint\u2019 of an existing right.\u201d<\/p>\n The Nunavut government also wants to see restrictions in some sensitive bird habitat areas lifted to allow for marine infrastructure development like ports and cable projects.\u00a0<\/p>\n The land use plan also has exceptions for planned projects that haven’t completed regulatory approval, such as the Grays Bay Road and Port<\/a> and the Kivalliq hydro-fibre link<\/a>. The federal government said the routing for those corridors could still change, and it wants the plan to reflect that fluidity.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to this article Estimated 5 minutes The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":786427,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[49,48,295,66],"class_list":["post-786426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-environment","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/786426","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=786426"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/786426\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/786427"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=786426"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=786426"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=786426"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1775056335_924_default.jpg\")
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Work being done at the Meadowbank mine in Nunavut. NTI said there needs to be a balance between social development, conservation and sustainable economic development, which it doesn’t believe is sufficient in this proposed land use plan. (The Canadian Press)<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1783442418_493_default.jpg\")
Then-prime minister Brian Mulroney signs the Nunavut Land Claim Agreement in 1993 as negotiators James Eetoolook, Paul Quassa, Titus Allooloo and Tom Siddon look on. A land use plan is a legal requirement under that agreement. (Nick Newbery)<\/p>\n