A proposed Inuit-led national marine conservation area would stop oil and gas development and mining in the waters of the Torngat Mountains, and bring much-needed resources to guard this storied place. Photo Credit: Pat Kane
Environment CanadaIndigenous-Led Marine Conservation – a Win for Nature, and Culture
A national park located in northern Labrador, Canada, will be home to the very first Inuit-led national marine conservation area, thus protecting ecosystems and culture alike.
According to the Labrador Inuit Association’s chief negotiator, Toby Andersen, the park reserve [is] “the Inuit gift to the people of Canada”: it’s a place where cultural heritage and natural beauty can be both protected and appreciated.
The Torngat Mountains National Park was established in 2008, three years after the creation of the Torngat Mountains National Park Reserve through the Labrador Inuit Association and the governments of Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador. The word Torngat derives from Torngait which means “place of spirits” in the Inuktitut dialect. For the first time, a national park was co-led by the Indigenous people of Canada rather than imposed on them. All 9,700 km2 of land is protected, up to the low-water mark, and now, nearly 15,000 km2 of marine sea off the coast of Torngat Mountains National Park will be protected, preserving subarctic waters where coral gardens flourish, offshore oil and gas exploration is prohibited, and a food chain sustains seabirds, fish, whales, and people alike.
