YLUPC
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Artwork: Yukon Graphic Recording

INTENT STATEMENT

The vision is sustainable development through cumulative effects management and the preservation of values, including water, wildlife and land–people relationships.

This LMU contains important wildlife habitat and significant socio-cultural use. Forestry is an important activity. It is important that this area remain open for current and future mineral interests without undermining its important environmental and cultural attributes. The south fork of the Klondike River is an important source of drinking water and is a salmon-bearing stream.

The LMU contains a past-producing heap-leach mine and associated infrastructure that has the potential to reopen. It also contains an active outfitting concession, traplines, and associated infrastructure. Access is via the Brewery Creek access road and secondary trails. The Dempster Highway sub-regional plan will be directly adjacent to this LMU.

An ISA 3 designation provides for measured mineral exploration and development and forestry, while protecting ecological and socio-cultural values in the surrounding landscape.

TR’ËHUDÈ AND STEWARDSHIP

“As you drive up the Dempster Highway, you can see that this is a special place. There are lots of creeks running through the area that are crystal clear. There are beavers who have called this place home for generations. Keeping the water clean is very important as this is a place where Citizens fish – the water and fish must remain healthy.”

– Dawson Regional Planning Commission

LMU DIRECTIONS

  1. The viewscape off the Dempster Highway should be maintained for its aesthetic and natural value.
  2. New access into the LMU is discouraged. If new surface access is required:
    1. It must be co-decided and co-managed by the Parties; where they cannot agree, Dispute Resolution applies.
    2. Winter access is preferred over all-season access.
    3. Access via the Dempster Highway is not allowed. New access should be limited to one route from the Brewery Creek direction.
  3. This area contains important habitat for sharp-tailed grouse, a species of management concern. Development in this area should be planned to minimize impacts of key habitat for sharp-tailed grouse.
  4. If Brewery Creek mine becomes active again, traffic may need to be managed to ensure the continued peaceful enjoyment of the adjacent Settlement Land in LMU 10: Tintina Trench.
  5. Due to the associated risks, heap-leach mining is not supported in this LMU under the current regulatory regime and with commonly used technologies.
  6. With regards to the Klondike River:
    1. Do not block the flow of water in the Klondike River.
    2. No ground disturbance or storage of contaminants (including fuel storage, outhouses, waste materials, and tailings ponds) within 30 m of the high-water mark.
    3. Reclamation of existing disturbances should be directed towards standards that protect heritage and water values.
    4. Use existing access points wherever possible.
    5. Access should be shared.
  7. This area is located within important caribou herd ranges. It is crucial to maintain key caribou migration pathways and to minimize disturbance to key habitat. Stewardship Directions for the caribou overlay (Section 5.3.4) must be followed.
PRIORITY VALUES
  • Water
  • Plant and Animal Relations
  • Salmon
VALUES
Land–People Relationship
  • Recreational opportunities exist for canoeing, packrafting, hiking, fishing, and camping.
Community Culture
  • The area contains numerous historic resources related to the Yukon North Fork Ditch.
  • Recreational opportunities offer residents a way to connect to and learn about the land.
Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Culture, Heritage, and Hän language
  • Several archeological resources are documented.
  • Year-round traditional use area; important area for harvesting moose, caribou, small game, birds, berries, and personal fuelwood.
Community Resilience
  • The North fork of the Klondike River is an important drinking water source.
  • There are opportunities for connecting with the land support physical and mental well-being.
Water
  • The North Klondike River is a key hydrological feature.
Plant and Animal Relations
  • The LMU includes high-elevation habitat that is crucial for some migratory bird species.
  • It contains WKAs for sharp-tailed grouse and well-established key habitat for beavers.
  • The Klondike River is home to resident fish species, including Arctic grayling.
  • Species-at-risk known to occur include collared pika, wolverine, bank swallow, lesser yellowlegs, olive-sided flycatcher, rusty blackbird, short-eared owl, horned grebe, and common nighthawk.
  • Species-at-risk expected in low numbers include Yukon podistera, gypsy cuckoo bumble bee, Suckley’s cuckoo bumble bee, western bumble bee mckayi subspecies, barn swallow, and transverse lady beetle.
  • Unglaciated alpine terrain contains endemic plant species (Ogilvie Mountains Spring Beauty).
Salmon
  • The Klondike River provides important Chinook salmon spawning habitat; salmon have been documented in the upper reaches of the river near Hamilton Creek.
Caribou
  • The LMU contains key calving, post-calving, summer, and winter habitat for Clear Creek, Hart River, and Fortymile caribou herds.
Moose
  • There is extensive good moose habitat, including late-winter (February to April) habitat, along Hamilton and Brewery creeks.
Landscapes
  • The LMU is located within McQuesten Highlands ecoregion, which is not represented in the Yukon’s protected areas system.
  • It contains several known mineral licks.
Wetlands
  • Limited wetland habitats within lowlands, including bogs, fens, and marshes, provide important wildlife habitat and ecosystem services.
Sustainable Local Economy
  • The LMU overlaps with the South Klondike River landscape unit of the Dawson Forest Resources Management Plan, which is designated as a medium priority for forest resource development with high timber value.
  • There is active quartz exploration and a past gold-producing mine at Brewery Creek, which may reopen in the future.
  • The LMU overlaps with several trapping concessions and one active outfitting concession.

Indicator gauges

Surface disturbance (km²)
Linear disturbance (km)

Cumulative effects