Yukoner's have been talking a lot about regional land use planning lately. Great! Regional land use planning in the Yukon is our mandate, so we like the interest.  Here are some recent achievements and activities of the Council and staff:

• The Northern Planning Conference: we hosted over 230 people in mid-February and received raving reviews.
• We attended and presented at the YESAA Forum on Sustainability in Haines Junction in early March.
• We attended and presented at the NWT Land Use Planning Forum in Yellowknife in late March.
• We taught 2 classes in a University of Alberta Land Use Planning in Northern Canada course (at Yukon College)
• We re-submitted a second conformity check for Northern Cross’ “Eagle Plains Multi-Well Exploration Program” (YESAB project #2014-0112)

Our on-going projects:

• Hiring a Senior Policy & Planning Advisor in an attempt to replace Gerald Isaac who is retiring this spring. So long Gerald!
• North Yukon Regional Plan conformity checks
• Proceedings for the Northern Planning Conference
• Working with the Yukon Government and the Vuntut Gwitch'in Government to establishing a disturbance baseline for the Eagle Plains area (LMU 9 of the North Yukon Regional Land Use Plan)
• encouraging responses from the Yukon and First Nation Governments regarding important regional planning issues

Upcoming projects:

• Write a series of discussion papers (many already started). These will then be discussed with the signatories to Yukon’s Land Claim Agreements in order to reach a common understanding and consensus on implementing Chapter 11 Land Use Planning. Topics include:
  • How Chapter 11 is to be interpreted and implemented (see this letter to the Parties to the UFA and Yukon First Nation Final Agreements)
  • Developing organizational structures and clarifying roles (see the same letter)
  • Improvements to the Common Land Use Planning Process (CLUPP)
• Assisting the Yukon Government and Vuntut Gwitchin Government with the implementation of the North Yukon Regional Land Use Plan, beyond conformity checks and disturbance baseline establishment.
• A 2017 Conference or Workshop (theme TBA).

Also expected this spring is a decision by the Supreme Court of Canada on whether or not to take the case of the Peel Watershed Land Use Plan. While the Council has had no direct role in the legal actions taken so far, the legal rulings could greatly effect the work plan proposed.

For further detail, you may want to review our 2016-2017 Annual Work Plan and Budget, recently approved by the Yukon Land Use Planning Council. It discusses recent events pertinent to Yukon regional planning, and discusses what the Council hopes to achieve this fiscial year.

The YLUPC is proud to present Our Land, Our Vision which takes you from the origin of land claim agreements through the regional planning process to a land of “harmony” that results from a regional planning process. Anyone who is (or may become) interested in Yukon regional planning should watch this video, including the public, government staff and planning stakeholders. This is our first video since our "A Shared Vision" distributed on VHS in 1997.

Any thoughts, comments or suggestions are welcome by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

You can download the Council's summary of their recent strategic planning sessions   pdf here (191 KB) , or read on...

The members of the Yukon Land Use Planning Council held two sessions in late 2014 and early 2015 to discuss the strategic direction for the organization. While the council is strongly supported by an experienced secretariat, the council is fairly “young” with two members having been on the council for less than 2 years and the other member only recently appointed in June 2014. Effort was taken to understand the purpose, intent, role, challenges and future for the organization.

The Yukon Land Use Planning Council put out a press release on December 4, 2014. Click here to read it.

The Yukon Supreme Court Justice Ron Veale released his ruling on the Peel Watershed planning process. His full ruling and a more concise media summary may be found on the the Court's website. While the details are numerous he decided:

• The January 2014 Government approved Peel Watershed Regional Land Use Plan is quashed.
• The Government of Yukon is required to hold final Consultations with the affected First Nations on the Commission's Final Recommended Land Use Plan.
• These consultations are to be based on the modifications Yukon Government proposed to the Commission's earlier Recommended Land Use Plan.

The Yukon Land Use Planning Council is reviewing this decision.

As of December 1st, the Dawson Regional Planning Commission's planning process has been suspended until the Peel Watershed court case has a final resolution. The suspension of the process was mutually agreed to by the three parties to the planning process: the Government of Yukon, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in and Vuntut Gwitchin Government. The Yukon Government provided a press release on the matter. The Yukon Land Use Planning Council is reviewing the matter and is working with the Dawson Regional Planning Commission and their staff.

The Commission's office in Dawson City may be open as late as the end of December, but may close a week or two earlier. After the closure, questions about the Dawson Regional Land Use Plan should be directed to the Yukon Land Use Planning Council.

Thanks to all who contributed to the process. We look forward to the recommencement of the process and the completion of the Dawson Regional Land Use Plan.

On January 21-22nd, the Council host a workshop on Yukon's Common Land Use Planning Process (CLUPP). This workshop had two broad purposes:

• To consider potential improvements to the process by which regional plans are produced through the implementation of Chapter 11 of the Yukon First Nations Final Agreements;
• To develop the path forward that will lead to the completion of regional plans in the remaining planning regions.

The proceedings are posted here. These include presentations, an   pdf overall summary (103 KB) , and   pdf notes from the break-out groups (420 KB) .

Nick Grzybowski, a former intern at the Council, recently completed his masters thesis which captured the knowledge and experience of of those involved in the Peel Watershed planning process. Congratulations and good luck Nick! His thesis is available here. Nick's recent radio interview with CBC can be heard here.

Nick used the Council's office and resources while researching much of his thesis. However, links to this article are provided here to foster discussion of regional planning processes, and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Yukon Land Use Planning Council.

The Dawson Regional Planning Commission has just wrapped up the public consultation on their Plan Alternatives. After several months of working with the Yukon,Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in and Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation Governments and stakeholders, the Commission produced five plan alternatives that sketch out different possible directions the Draft Plan may take. After the review period ended on March 2, 2014, the Commission will now consider all the feedback and start to develop a Draft Plan that will likely be based on one or more alternatives. The staff of the Yukon Land Use Planning Council contributed analytical and administrative support to this project.

The academic journal the Northern Review recently published a case study of part of the Peel Watershed Planning Process - specifically that led by the Yukon Government upon receipt of the   pdf Final Recommended Plan (13.26 MB) . This analysis provides a number of lessons for future regional planning processes.

Links to this article are provided here to foster discussion of regional planning processes, and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Yukon Land Use Planning Council.