Staff from Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Canadian Wildlife Service will be meeting with Nunatsiavut community members to discuss the proposed listing of the Torngat Mountains caribou population and the Eastern Migratory caribou population, which includes the George River herd.
The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada recently assessed each population as Endangered, and the federal government is considering adding these populations to the list of at risk species under the federal Species at Risk Act, or ‘SARA’.
If the populations are listed, species and habitat protection and recovery measures can be implemented to help the populations recover.
The Canadian Wildlife Service is seeking input to inform the Minister of the Environment’s recommendation to Cabinet on whether to list these caribou populations as Endangered under SARA.
The meetings will be a space to share information and knowledge about caribou, as well as learn about the Species at Risk Act, and what would happen if the caribou populations are listed.
Before Christmas, Canadian Wildlife Service biologists visited Rigolet, Postville, and Goose Bay to talk with Nunatsiavut members. Over the next week and a half they will be visiting the following communities:
Nain: today January 28th; between 7pm and 9pm at the Nunatsiavut Government Boardroom. • Hopedale: January 30th; between 7pm and 9pm at the Hopedale Courtroom. • Makkovik: January 31st; between 7pm and 9pm at the Makkovik Arena Multipurpose Room.
• North West River: Tuesday, February 5th; between 7pm and 9pm at the North West River Town Council Chambers. This meeting is open to all Nunatsiavut members in the Lake Melville area.