The Boreal Caribou-also known as the Forest-Dwelling Caribou in Quebec-is an iconic species for Canadians and plays a significant role in the culture and history of Indigenous peoples. The species is found only in Canada, and responsibility for its long-term survival and recovery is shared by federal, provincial, and territorial governments.
Today, the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, announced that the Government of Canada is initiating the process of making an emergency order to protect the habitat of the three most at-risk Boreal Caribou populations in Canada: the Val-d'Or, Charlevoix, and Pipmuacan populations.
In the coming weeks, the Government of Canada will consult with the Government of Quebec, Quebec's Indigenous communities, the public, and stakeholders and interested parties, including local communities and industries, on the boundaries of potential protection areas and the scope of proposed prohibitions that would apply within them. Following these consultations, the drafting of the order will be finalized. Once in place, the order will protect targeted areas of the best available habitat for these three Boreal Caribou populations by prohibiting activities such as logging and road network expansions.
Originally promised in 2016, the tabling of Quebec's strategy for protecting Boreal and Mountain Caribou has been postponed many times. In August 2022, the Government of Quebec recommitted to publishing a comprehensive strategy by June 2023 and to implementing measures to reduce the disturbance rate of undisturbed habitat to 65 percent within the range of each population. Although the Government of Quebec recently presented pilot projects for the Charlevoix and Gaspésie populations, no comprehensive strategy has been announced, and the species faces imminent threats to its recovery.
