Ottawa event keeps up momentum to protect Lancaster Sound

Oceans on the Hill participants included, from left, WWF-Canada President and CEO David Miller, All-Party Oceans Caucus co-chair Fin Donnelly, keynote speaker John Amagoalik and WWF-Canada’s Arctic program director Paul Crowley. (PHOTO BY GAYLE MCCLELLAND/WWF)

Federal members of parliament, environmentalists and Inuit can agree on one thing — Lancaster Sound is a critical marine area that needs protection.

Its rich marine ecosystem is already set to become a National Marine Conservation area according to a proposal working its way through a federal regulatory process since 2010.

That was the focus of an event on Parliament Hill March 31, hosted by an all-party oceans caucus group in collaboration with the World Wildlife Fund Canada.

And from an Inuit perspective, it’s a project that been unofficially in the works as far back as the 1970s, said Paul Crowley, director of WWF’s Canadian Arctic program.

“The process is well-established for creating a park,” Crowley said from Ottawa April 1. “It’s constant, but it’s a slow process, so let’s keep the momentum going.

“We’re interested in keeping it alive,” he added. “This is real jewel for Nunavut, and for Canada.”

The goal of the March 31 event, called Oceans on the Hill, was to offer a snapshot of the Arctic region that most Canadians may never have the chance to see.

Lancaster Sound, which separates northern Baffin Island from Devon Island, is known for its rich biodiversity and abundant marine life.

But its seabed is said to contain 13 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 4.5 billion barrels of oil, making it a target for development.

The event’s keynote speaker, Inuit leader John Amagoalik, told MPs March 31 about how Inuit have travelled to Lancaster Sound for centuries, and how they hope to play a meaningful role in the management of the area.

“What really strikes me about Lancaster Sound is that it’s not wilderness — this is home to many people,” Crowley said. “It’s not in the community, but this is home.”

According to estimates, as many as 70,000 narwhal migrate through the area each spring, three-quarters of the species’ population.

And Canada’s largest sub-population of polar bears — an estimated 2,500 of them — live in and around Lancaster Sound’s sea ice and make their dens along its coastal areas.

There’s great potential for Inuit to benefit from the creation of a conservation area from a tourist perspective, Crowley said, particularly given its proximity to the nearby bird sanctuary on Bylot Island and Sirmilik national park.

Inuit continue to wait for the release of a feasibility study on the proposed conservation area prepared by Parks Canada and the Qikiqtani Inuit Association.

That study will also consider a request by the QIA to enlarge the original 40,000-square-kilometre boundary of the proposed park.

At that size, Lancaster Sound would become the largest marine protected area in the country.

But its designation would still allow for commercial fishing and shipping.

After that, the federal government would have to negotiate an Inuit Impact and Benefit Agreement with local Inuit groups, before the proposal can be become final through federal legislation.