Yellowknife (November 28, 2014) – The new Wildlife Act for the Northwest Territories (NWT) comes into force today.

The new Act provides the tools needed to manage and conserve wildlife for the benefit of current and future generations in the NWT and reflects the interests of all residents of the NWT.

“This new legislation is the result of a collaborative process between our government, wildlife co-management boards, Aboriginal governments and extensive consultation and public engagement,” said Environment and Natural Resources Minister J. Michael Miltenberger. “It promotes cooperative and collaborative working relationships for effective wildlife management at the local, regional and territorial levels and recognizes Aboriginal and treaty rights and the rights contained in land claim and self-government agreements.”

Regulations needed to implement the new Wildlife Act are being developed in three phases using the same collaborative process.  Phase one regulations, which deal with immediate changes required to bring the legislation into place and ensure people can continue to harvest and use wildlife in a safe and sustainable manner, have been completed.

Work on phase two of the regulations will begin in the next few weeks.  These regulations will address changes needed to implement some of the new concepts in the Act, such as requiring developers to have wildlife management and monitoring plans and requirements for harvest reporting and harvester training.

Phase three will be ongoing and will deal with new regulations, as required.

A copy of the new Wildlife Act for the NWT can be found on-line at:http://www.justice.gov.nt.ca/pdf/ACTS/Wildlife.pdf.

Media inquiries:
Brenda Norris
Media Liaison
Government of the Northwest Territories
Tel: 867-669-2302
Email: brenda_norris@gov.nt.ca