The Barriere Lake Trilateral Agreement

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The Barriere Lake Trilateral Agreement

• Algonquins of Barriere Lake, Gouvernement du
  Québec, Government of Canada

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Trilateral Agreement Territory Location
Trilateral Agreement Territory
La Verendrye Wildlife Reserve Boundary
Rapid Lake Community
Quebec
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Agreement Objectives

• To develop for implementation, a draft
  ecosystem-based Integrated Resource Management
  Plan (IRMP) with a commitment to the principles
  of sustainable development, conservation,
  protection of the traditional way of life of the
  Algonquins, versatile resource use.
• To reconcile forestry operations and sports
  hunting and fishing with the environmental
  concerns traditional way-of-life of the
  Algonquins of Barriere Lake.

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Significance as Pilot Project

• practical sustainable development
• Basis for co-management and resource revenue
  sharing arrangements with government
• blends traditional ways with modern development
  processes
• common working environment for regional
  stakeholders

• documents cultural ecological aspects of
  aboriginal way-of-life
• creates educational operational model
• Identifies cultural and environmental candidate
  protected areas

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Phases of the Trilateral Agreement

• Phase I the collection, inventory, study and
  analysis of data respecting renewable resources
  their uses on the territory
• Phase II preparation of a draft IRMP
• Phase III formulation of recommendations
  regarding draft IRMP implementation

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Guiding Principles

• continuation of the traditional way-of-life
• conservation
• versatile use
• adaptive ecosystem-based management

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Phase I Activities

• Indigenous Knowledge Program
• Natural Resources Sustainable Development
  Program
• Economic/Social Development Program
• Measures to Harmonize Forestry Activities with
  the traditional activities of the Algonquins

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Logical Framework
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Indigenous Knowledge Program

• To document Algonquin ecological social
  knowledge for incorporation into the IRMP,
  thereby facilitate harmonization of Algonquin
  non-Algonquin land-use regimes consistent with
  the interest of the Algonquins of Barriere Lake.

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SAS Mapping
LEGEND
Sacred Areas
Sugar Bush
Occupancy
Roots
Wood
Burial Sites
Moose Yards
Tobacco
Spawning Areas
Medicinal Plants
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Algonquin Toponymy
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Big Game Kills
LEGEND
Bear
Deer
Moose
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Areas of Concern Management Strategy

• ABL Areas of Concern (SAS)
• Algonquin traditional occupancy and use
  sites documented during Phase I - Strategies
  Prescriptions developed by IRMP Technical Team in
  consultation with ABL for Phase II IRMP planning.
• Ministry of Natural Resources, Wildlife and
  Parks Guidelines Land Affectation
• Quebec Forest Act

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FAPAQ MRN Affectation Zones
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ABL Areas of Concern (SAS)
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ABL Areas of Concern (TMA 1)
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ABL Areas of Concern (cont.)TMA 1
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ABL Areas of Concern (cont.)TMA 1
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ABL Areas of Concern (cont.)TMA 1
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ABL Areas of Concern (cont.)TMA 1
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Mosaic Cutting Strategy for Even-aged Stands
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Provisional Measures

• Sensitive Area Study (SAS) identification of
  sensitive zones to be protected within cutting
  areas
• Measures to Harmonize (MTH) forestry operations
  with the Algonquin way-of-life

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Measures to Harmonize
LEGEND
Harvest Zone
Harvest Exclusion
Zone Requiring Measures to Harmonize
Hydrography
Ecoforestry Polygon
Planned Roads
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Sustainable Development of Natural Resources

• To obtain utilize the highest quality forestry
  wildlife data in the development of a
  sustainable adaptive management strategy for the
  renewable resources of the Trilateral Agreement
  Territory (TAT).

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Modeling Forest Growth
LEGEND
PRESENT AGE CLASS
FUTURE AGE CLASS
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Habitat Suitability Moose
HABITAT CLASSIFICATION
LATE WINTER
EARLY WINTER
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Economic/Social Development Program

• To profile analyze Algonquin non-Algonquin
  local regional socio-economic activities the
  legal frameworks which govern them, facilitating
  the selection of sustainable resource management
  alternatives consistent with the interests of the
  Algonquins of Barriere Lake.

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Context Forestry in the TAT

• TAT area 10,900 km2
• No. Common Areas (CAAFs) 7
• Area occupied by CAAFs 9,188 km2
• No. CAAF beneficiaries 36
• Gross merchantable volume (all species)
  77,025,340 m3
• AAC (all species) 1,289,687 m3

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Economic Value of Activities in the TAT(1994
Data)
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Phase II Activities

• Conservation Suitability Gap Analysis
• Preparation of Wildlife Management Plans
• Preparation of Draft Integrated Resource
  Management Plans for 7 Traditional Management
  Areas (TMAs)

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Traditional Management Areas
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Conservation Suitability Analysis

• Collaboration between World Wildlife Fund -
  Canada ABL (Arbex Forest Resource Consultants)
• Natural Regions C2, C3, C6
• Data layers
• Forest cover diversity
• Old growth forest
• Road less/intact areas
• Enduring features
• Physical habitat diversity
• Cutover areas

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Conservation Values for Forest Cover Diversity
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Conservation Values for Old Growth Forests
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Conservation Values for Road Buffers
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Conservation Values for Enduring Features
Diversity
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Conservation Values for Physical Habitat Diversity
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Conservation Values for Cutover Areas
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Preliminary Findings

• - Areas within the Trilateral Agreement
  Territory could be considered as candidate
  protection areas for regional representation of
  enduring natural features.
• A correlation exists between high value candidate
  protection areas and sites identified as
  culturally significant by the Algonquins.

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Integrated Resource Management Planning Strategies

• Diverse planning team involving ABL
• Planned public input through standard public
  consultation for CAAF holders ABL community
  meetings
• Planned public inspection of final plan as a
  component of the Trilateral Agreement Process
• Algonquin values mapping updates of maps
  2000-2003
• Area of concern planning process

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Planning Issues, Influences and Concerns

• Algonquin issues, aspirations concerns
• current forest condition
• desired future forest condition
• non-timber values requiring protection
• existing resource uses of the territory
• other resource management issues
• current legislation government policy issues

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Benchmark Scenarios

• 1) Unrestricted Harvest (All Eligible Harvest
  Area is available for harvest)
• 2) Quebec Forest Act Applied
• 3) Quebec Forest Act TAT Area of Concern
  Strategies Applied
• 4) Quebec Forest Act Enhanced TAT Area of
  Concern Strategies Applied
• 5) Conservation Suitability Analysis Areas (Top
  12 and 8 CSA Areas removed from EHA)
• Scenarios were not developed for uneven-age
  management regimes as uneven-age strategies are
  viewed as less intrusive by the ABL.

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Scenario 5 TMA 2 NW SectionConservation
Suitability Analysis
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Scenario Modeling / Negotiation Support

• In cooperation with Quebec our planning team is
  developing a computer model to predict future
  wood supply under various management scenarios.
  This model will assist and support negotiations
  for the implementation of the IRMP by predicting
  the future forest condition expected to result
  from the implementation of each strategy and test
  each strategy for its ability to ensure forest
  sustainability while ensuring the continuance of
  the Algonquin traditional activities over time.

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Sample Model Output20 Period Projection (100
years)
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Measuring Social Criteria and Indicators

• To know if ecosystems are being managed in a
  sustainably and in a culturally appropriate
  manner - parameters linked to sustainability of
  ecosystems and culture must be measured.
• Basis for continuous improvement of forest
  management from ABL perspective

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Social Indicators - Process

• Development of Social Indicators is a dynamic
  process which will evolve with needs and new
  knowledge
• Trend data, fixed measures, indices and ratios
  may be used
• Principles will be refined and validated over
  time through monitoring, data collection and
  analysis
• Require inputs of time and money

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Examples of Social Indicators

• Area of Land Quality of Resources for
  Subsistence Cultural Purposes
• Level of Land Alienation
• Algonquin Values Documents Maps used in
  decision making process
• Protection of cultural heritage sites
• Level of Societael Economic Benefit

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Examples of Social Indicators (cont.)

• Distribution of resource benefits revenues
• Level of Land Use Conflict
• Level of Community Satisfaction with IRMP process
• Participation of ABL in decision making process
• ABL Scientific Databases etc.

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Examples of Measures

• Level of transmigration of Algonquin harvesters
  within and between TMAs
• Geographic distribution of harvests (percent
  area) within TMA
• Level of traditional Land Use and practise of
  traditional activities
• Level of satisfaction with hunting, trapping,
  fishing results
• Prescence/absence of ABL land use maps

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Measures (cont.)

• Level and trends in social pathologies
• Person/days employment (ABL)
• Number of work stoppages
• etc.

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Indicators of Effective Forest Management
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Indicators of Effective Forest Management
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Indicators of Effective Forest Management
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Next Steps

• Phase III
• The development of recommendations for the
  implementation of the IRMP
• Negotiations for co-management and resource
  revenue sharing by March 31, 2004.
• Re-engage Federal Government in the Trilateral
  Process (Federal Government unilaterally withdrew
  from the Agreement in 2001).

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Natural Resource Co-Management
Exclusion
Inclusion
ALGONQUINS OF BARRIERE LAKE
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Further Information

• Grand Chief Carol McBride
• Special Representative Algonquins of
  Barriere Lake
• Telephone [phone]
• Bruce Byford R.P.F.
• Technical Advisor
• Arbex Forest Resource Consultants Ltd
• 554 Craig Road
• Oxford Mills, On K0G 1S0
• Telephone [phone]
• www.arbex.ca