After 30 years of uncertainty about the future of its traditional lands, the Ktunaxa Nation Council (KNC) can now move forward with community consultation to ensure the effective stewardship and conservation of the Central Purcell Mountains through the creation of an Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area (IPCA).

NCC was honoured to work with the KNC to help them achieve their vision of fully protecting Qat'muk. NCC was invited to help deliver the complete and permanent extinguishment of all tenures and development rights associated with a large ski resort development, and to support KNC in their ongoing conservation planning for the establishment of an IPCA.

Sometimes the smallest projects carry the biggest impact. In the midst of a vast area of cultural and ecological significance, NCC purchased a private holding of about one hectare, transferring it to Parks Canada. This removed an obstacle to creating Thaidene Nëné National Park reserve, influencing the conservation over 14,000 square kilometres, in keeping with the aspirations and wishes of local Indigenous communities.

The Łutselkʼe Dene First Nation received worldwide recognition for the creation of the reserve, which will be managed by Indigenous communities. Thaidene Nëné will provide opportunities to retain and continue traditional ways of life while conserving spectacular landscapes and supporting sustainable economic development.

NCC’s Buffalo Pound project consists of 866 hectares of native grasslands and seven kilometres of shoreline along the north shore of Buffalo Pound Lake. These grasslands help filter the drinking water for Regina, Moose Jaw and several surrounding communities.

This area is at risk for future development, as shorelines are in demand for recreation and industry. Conserving this important natural area will sustain a healthy ecosystem, including supporting recreation and economic needs. Keeping the province’s grasslands and lakes healthy benefits the people and wildlife that depend on them.

The Vidal Bay project comprises more than 7,600 hectares of shoreline and forest, redefining landscape-scale conservation in central Ontario. The forests, wetlands and alvar habitats found here capture and store carbon dioxide equivalent to taking nearly 5,000 cars off the road annually.

When combined with nearby and adjacent conservation lands that we have already conserved, this makes up a protected area complex of 250 square kilometres (24,860 hectares), the largest of its kind south of the Canadian Shield in Ontario. This project has helped set a new standard of large landscape-scale conservation in Ontario.

The Krieg project is full of life. Its mature forests are home to eastern wood-pewee, a small, threatened songbird. Several species of spring salamander also live in the area’s streams. NCC hopes to connect the property to the Green Mountains Nature Reserve, a place of high biodiversity and a well-used outdoor recreation area in Quebec.

The Au Diable Vert outdoor centre has also acquired land adjacent to this new project. Together, these two acquisitions help consolidate an important network of walking trails that cross the properties of both organizations and demonstrate that, through an innovative partnership, it is possible to combine conservation and recreational activities.

The Chignecto Isthmus is a narrow strip of land connecting mainland Nova Scotia to New Brunswick and the rest of North America. Since 2010, NCC has conserved just over 2,200 hectares on both sides of the provincial border, continuing to expand upon our existing conservation efforts along this critical wildlife corridor.

Only 21 kilometres wide at its narrowest, the isthmus separates two large bodies of water: Chignecto Bay, a sub-basin of the Bay of Fundy, and the Northumberland Strait, an arm of the Gulf St. Lawrence, on the Atlantic Ocean.

The Grasses Nature Reserve is the most extensive example of natural grassland and the largest wetland centred along a river in Newfoundland and Labrador. It provides habitat for several rare plant species and large-scale connectivity for a host of wildlife.

This remote 1,570-hectare nature reserve is 25 kilometres from the town of Stephenville Crossing. It is situated along the Long Range Mountains, the most northerly extension of the Appalachian Mountains in North America.