Consultation Summary for Development of the 2024 Management Plan for Tuktut Nogait National Park

Introduction

As described in the management plan (section 6.0), management plans provide decision makers with strategic direction over a 10-year period. The strategies, objectives and targets in the management plan are considered during work planning, and guide decisions about specific projects.

The management planning program for Tuktut Nogait was carried out in coordination with the Tuktut Nogait Management Board (the Board). Section 3.0 of the management plan provides further detail on the role of the Board and its membership.

It is a requirement of management planning at Parks Canada that the development of a management plan includes opportunities for external input. Under the Canada National Parks Act (among other laws, agreements and policies), management planning must include consultation with Indigenous partners, stakeholders and the public, including opportunities at the national, regional and local levels.

This summary of the consultation process provides partners, stakeholders and the public with an understanding of how Parks Canada developed the management plan, including how external input was incorporated. This transparency is also supported by the ongoing communications available from Parks Canada during implementation of the management plan.

Review of the planning program

The planning program, beginning with the development of the state of the park assessment, was initiated with the Board in 2019. The program slowed during the COVID-19 pandemic, which impacted the ability to hold in-person meetings. During the summer of 2023 the draft plan was reviewed by partners, including the Paulatuk Hunters and Trappers Committee and the Paulatuk Community Corporation. In early 2024 (January – March) the draft management plan was shared for consultation and posted on the park’s web site for public comment.

What we heard

Given that Tuktut Nogait is remote and receives few visitors, very little public input was received during the comment period on the draft plan. Input from partners during that time (for example, from the Wildlife Management Advisory Council of the Northwest Territories and Fisheries and Oceans Canada) resulted in minor clarifications related to the following themes:

• the park’s connection to the Délı̨nę District within the Sahtu Settlement Area, and
• biodiversity and the ranges of species related to climate change.

Public consultation did not result in changes to the plan’s strategies, objectives or targets.

Final plan

Following the consultation period on the draft plan, adjustments were accepted by the Board and Field Unit Superintendent, and the final plan was moved through its approval process for tabling in Parliament. Unless significant changes arise in how the park is governed or used, the next program for management planning will start in about 2031.