No litigation pending against caribou recovery plan

Even though the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation says the federal government’s caribou recovery plan has not addressed all concerns, neither the ACFN nor the handful of other First Nations that forced the government’s hand on protecting the woodland caribou will be pursuing further legal action on that plan at this point.

In October, the federal government released its Boreal Woodland Caribou Recovery Strategy.

“They’ve identified stronger areas for protection, but what they’ve missed is that there are certain herds in areas that are vital to First Nations … in geographical areas that they are still not addressing,” said Eriel Deranger, spokesperson for ACFN.
She says the government has chosen not to protect caribou and bison in areas that are tarsand extraction zones.

“They’re vital. We have scientific data and traditional ecological knowledge data that have outlined these areas as critical to species survival,” she said.

The strategy now requires all remaining caribou populations be restored to self-sustaining levels and includes provisions to treat all herds equally.

This is a positive move, says Deranger, but the plan does not identify the steps that will be taken to ensure this happens.
“They talk about working toward protecting all herds, but what does that really mean? And how does that translate? And what does the province and what does the federal government need to do to make sure that happens? Those solutions haven’t really been clearly defined within their strategy,” she said.

Deranger also notes that very few of the recommendations made by ACFN and other First Nations have been incorporated into the final plan. The most glaring omission is the First Nations’ call for a co-management approach to areas that have significance to First Nations populations and which contain species that First Nations rely upon.

The federal government had delayed release of the recovery strategy for months. It engaged in a public consultation period from August 2011 to late February 2012 and claimed that overwhelming public response had resulted in the need for additional time before the final strategy could be presented.
“Everybody can pat themselves on the back for putting the government to the fire on that. It’s definitely better.

It’s still not ideal, but definitely better than what they put out in the draft,” said Jenny Biem, counsel with Woodward and Company, which represents ACFN along with Beaver Lake Cree, Swan River and Cold Lake First Nation. Enoch Cree Nation had initially been involved in the litigation but withdrew earlier this year.

Biem says her clients have decided against filing litigation on the federal government’s Boreal Woodland Caribou Recovery Strategy at this time. However, legal action at a later date is still possible.
Biem notes that her clients are considering forcing the government’s hand on an emergency order.

Further litigation was delayed until after the recovery strategy was presented.

In 2010, the First Nations along with environmental groups Alberta Wilderness Association and Pembina Institute challenged Environment Minister Peter Kent’s decision, and that of his predecessor, to not issue an emergency order. The woodland caribou have been considered a threatened species since 2003 under the Species at Risk Act. In February 2012, Kent once more decided against issuing an emergency order.

Biem says her clients will make a decision on emergency order litigation in January 2013.