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Agreement Between the Government of Canada and the Government of the United States of America on the Conservation of the Porcupine Caribou Herd

E100687 - CTS 1987 No. 31

The Government of Canada and the Government of the United States of America, hereinafter called the “Parties”:

RECOGNIZING that the Porcupine Caribou Herd regularly migrates across the international boundary between Canada and the United States of America and that caribou in their large free-roaming herds comprise a unique and irreplaceable natural resource of great value which each generation should maintain and make use of so as to conserve them for future generations;

ACKNOWLEDGING that there are various human uses of caribou and that for generations certain people of Yukon Territory and the Northwest Territories in Canada have customarily and traditionally harvested Porcupine Caribou to meet their nutritional, cultural and other essential needs and will continue to do so in the future, and that certain rural residents of the State of Alaska in the United States of America have harvested Porcupine Caribou for customary and traditional uses and will continue to do so in the future; and that these people should participate in the conservation of the Porcupine Caribou Herd and its habitat;

RECOGNIZING the importance of conserving the habitat of the Porcupine Caribou Herd, including such areas as calving, post-calving, migration, wintering and insect relief habitat;

UNDERSTANDING that the conservation of the Porcupine Caribou Herd and its habitat requires goodwill among landowners, wildlife managers, users of the caribou and other users of the area;

RECOGNIZING that the Porcupine Caribou Herd should be conserved according to ecological principles and that actions for the conservation of the Porcupine Caribou Herd that result in the long-term detriment of other indigenous species of wild fauna and flora should be avoided;

RECOGNIZING that the Parties wish to establish co-operative bilateral mechanisms to co-ordinate their activities for the long-term conservation of the Porcupine Caribou Herd and its habitat;

RECOGNIZING that co-operation and co-ordination under this Agreement should not alter domestic authorities regarding management of the Porcupine Caribou Herd and its habitat and should be implemented by existing rather than new management structures;

HAVE AGREED as follows:

  1. Definitions

    For the purpose of this Agreement only:

    1. “Porcupine Caribou Herd” means those migratory barren ground caribou found north of 64°, 30’ north latitude and north of the Yukon River which usually share common and traditional calving and post-calving aggregation grounds between the Canning River in the State of Alaska and the Babbage River in Yukon Territory and which historically migrate within the State of Alaska, Yukon Territory, and the Northwest Territories.
    2. “Conservation” means the management and use of the Porcupine Caribou Herd and its habitat utilizing methods and procedures which ensure the long-term productivity and usefulness of the Porcupine Caribou Herd. Such methods and procedures include, but are not limited to, activities associated with scientific resources management such as research, law enforcement, census taking, habitat maintenance, monitoring and public information and education.
    3. “Habitat” means the whole or any part of the ecosystem, including summer, winter and migration range, used by the Porcupine Caribou Herd during the course of its long-term movement patterns, as generally outlined on the map attached as an Annex.
  2. Objectives

    The objectives of the Parties are:

    1. To conserve the Porcupine Caribou Herd and its habitat through international co-operation and co-ordination so that the risk of irreversible damage or long-term adverse effects as a result of use of caribou or their habitat is minimized;
    2. To ensure opportunities for customary and traditional uses of the Porcupine Caribou Herd by:
      1. in Alaska, rural Alaska residents in accordance with 16 U.S.C. 3113 and 3114, AS 16.05.940(23), (28) and (32), and AS 16.05.258(c); and
      2. in Yukon and the Northwest Territories, Native users as defined by sections A8 and A9 of the Porcupine Caribou Management Agreement (signed on October 26, 1985) and those other users identified pursuant to the process described in section E2(e) of the said Agreement;
    3. To enable users of Porcupine Caribou to participate in the international co-ordination of the conservation of the Porcupine Caribou Herd and its habitat;
    4. To encourage co-operation and communication among governments, users of Porcupine Caribou and others to achieve these objectives.
  3. Conservation
    1. The Parties will take appropriate action to conserve the Porcupine Caribou Herd and its habitat.
    2. The Parties will ensure that the Porcupine Caribou Herd, its habitat and the interests of users of Porcupine Caribou are given effective consideration in evaluating proposed activities within the range of the Herd.
    3. Activities requiring a Party’s approval having a potential impact on the conservation of the Porcupine Caribou Herd or its habitat will be subject to impact assessment and review consistent with domestic laws, regulations and processes.
    4. Where an activity in one country is determined to be likely to cause significant long-term adverse impact on the Porcupine Caribou Herd or its habitat, the other Party will be notified and given an opportunity to consult prior to final decision.
    5. Activities requiring a Party’s approval having a potential significant impact on the conservation or use of the Porcupine Caribou Herd or its habitat may require mitigation.
    6. The Parties should avoid or minimize activities that would significantly disrupt migration or other important behavior patterns of the Porcupine Caribou Herd or that would otherwise lessen the ability of users of Porcupine Caribou to use the Herd.
    7. When evaluating the environmental consequences of a proposed activity, the Parties will consider and analyze potential impacts, including cumulative impacts, to the Porcupine Caribou Herd, its habitat and affected users of Porcupine Caribou.
    8. The Parties will prohibit the commercial sale of meat from the Porcupine Caribou Herd.
  4. International Porcupine Caribou Board
    1. The Parties will establish an advisory board to be known as the International Porcupine Caribou Board, hereinafter called the Board.
    2. The Parties will each appoint four members of the Board within a reasonable period following the entry into force of the present Agreement.
    3. The Board will:
      1. adopt rules and procedures for its operation, including those related to the chairmanship of the Board; and
      2. give advice or make recommendations to the Parties, subject to concurrence by a majority of each Party’s appointees.
    4. The Board, seeking, where appropriate, information available from management agencies, local communities, users of Porcupine Caribou, scientific and other interests, will make recommendations and provide advice on those aspects of the conservation of the Porcupine Caribou Herd and its habitat that require international co-ordination, including but not limited to the following:
      1. the sharing of information and consideration of actions to further the objectives of this Agreement at the international level;
      2. the actions that are necessary or advisable to conserve the Porcupine Caribou Herd and its habitat;
      3. co-operative conservation planning for the Porcupine Caribou Herd throughout its range;
      4. when advisable to conserve the Porcupine Caribou Herd, recommendations on overall harvest and appropriate harvest limits for each of Canada and the United States of America taking into account the Board’s review of available data, patterns of customary and traditional uses and other factors the Board deems appropriate;
      5. the identification of sensitive habitat deserving special consideration; and
      6. recommendations, where necessary, through the Parties as required, to other boards and agencies in Canada and the United States of America on matters affecting the Porcupine Caribou Herd or its habitat.
    5. It is understood that the advice and recommendations of the Board are not binding on the Parties; however, by virtue of this Agreement, it has been accepted that the Parties will support and participate in the operation of the Board. In particular they will:
      1. provide the Board with information regarding the conservation and use of the Porcupine Caribou Herd and its habitat;
      2. promptly notify the Board of proposed activities that could significantly affect the conservation of the Porcupine Caribou Herd or its habitat and provide an opportunity to the Board to make recommendations;
      3. consider the advice and respond to the recommendations of the Board; and
      4. provide written reasons for the rejection in whole or in part of conservation recommendations made by the Board.
  5. International Responsibility

    The Parties will consult promptly to consider appropriate action in the event of:

    1. significant damage to the Porcupine Caribou Herd or its habitat for which there is responsibility, if any, under international law; or
    2. significant disruption of migration or other important behavior patterns of the Porcupine Caribou Herd that would significantly lessen the ability of users of Porcupine Caribou to use the Herd.
  6. Implementation

    Co-operation and co-ordination under and other implementation of this Agreement shall be consistent with the laws, regulations and other national policies of the Parties and is subject to the availability of funding.

  7. Interpretation and Application

    All questions related to the interpretation or application of the Agreement will be settled by consultation between the Parties.

  8. Entry into force - Amendments
    1. This Agreement which is authentic in English and French shall enter into force on signature and shall remain in force until terminated by either Party upon twelve months written notice to the other.
    2. At the request of either Party, consultations will be held with a view to convening a meeting of the representatives of the Parties to amend this Agreement.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, being duly authorized by their respective Governments, have signed this Agreement.

DONE at Ottawa, in duplicate, this 17th day of July, 1987 in the English and French languages, both texts being equally authentic.


Thomas M. McMillan
FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA

Donald Paul Hodel
FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA


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