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Prime Minister Stephen Harper poses with DUC’s Shannon Haszard (left), and CPAWS colleagues Darha Phillpot (second from right) and Alison Woodley (right).
DUC applauds federal government expansion of Nahanni Park 
Government of Canada announces significant expansion of Nahanni National Park Reserve.
Fort Simpson, N.W.T., Aug. 8, 2007—Ducks Unlimited Canada congratulates the Government of Canada and the Dehcho First Nations for the withdrawal of a further 5,400 km2 in the South Nahanni Watershed to “enable a significant expansion of Nahanni National Park Reserve.”
The announcement by Prime Minister Harper on Aug. 8, 2007, in Fort Simpson, N.W.T., ensures that a total of almost 29,000 km2 is now protected while Parks Canada works with Dehcho First Nations, conservation groups, and other stakeholders to complete the steps necessary to permanently expand Nahanni National Park Reserve to include the entire South Nahanni Watershed and Nahanni Karstlands.
“This is a significant contribution to conservation in the N.W.T. and Canada’s boreal region,” says Shannon Haszard, DUC’s Northwest Territories manager. “DUC also commends the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) for the years of effort they have invested in the Nahanni expansion process.”
At the announcement, the prime minister said that the Nahanni Park expansion reflects the federal government’s commitment to preserving the North’s ecological treasures, noting that environmental protection is one of four main priorities on his government’s northern agenda.
“The prime minister spoke about the importance of protecting wilderness and wildlife and the North’s ecological and cultural treasures,” says Haszard of the announcement, which was also attended by federal Environment Minister John Baird. “This indicates that the federal government acknowledges the importance of balancing conservation with resource development opportunities in the N.W.T. We look forward to this new momentum and celebrating an announcement granting protection for the Ramparts River and Wetlands, a key area in the Mackenzie Valley that DUC has identified as critical to our continent’s waterfowl populations, in the near future”.
In the N.W.T., DUC works closely with First Nations, other conservation organizations, the federal and territorial governments, and industry to identify and protect important wetland habitats through the N.W.T. Protected Areas Strategy and regional land use planning.
For more information, contact:
Leigh Patterson
Corporate Media Relations Specialist
Ducks Unlimited Canada
Phone: (204) 467-3306
Toll-free: 1-800-665-3825
Email: l_patterson@ducks.ca
