Attawapiskat studies caribou population with radio collars

Proposals to increase understanding of Ontario’s woodland caribou and their habitat needs have been approved by the province.

August 21, 2008: Volume 35 #17

Attawapiskat was one of seven volunteer stewardship projects in northeastern Ontario to receive funding in the amount of $29,320 to lead a woodland caribou study, said Suzanne Barnes, lands and resources director at Attawapiskat.

“A group of researchers have installed radio collars on the local woodland caribou and have been tracking and monitoring them for a number of years now,” she said. “The First Nation also has knowledge about the local woodland caribou population. Our project will combine the two knowledge bases to form a complete picture of the population that exists here in the James Bay Lowlands.”

At present, Ontario is home to more than 30,000 species, of which more than 180 including woodland caribou, are currently identified as being at risk. The range of forest-dwelling woodland caribou, which was formerly found throughout most of northern Ontario, has receded northward and today generally lies north of the 50th latitude, which runs east and west across Ontario, north of Sioux Lookout, Geraldton, Hearst and Cochrane.

She said the community’s goal is to develop conservation measures and a greater understanding of the local species and its needs.

“We are working with De Beers through AMEC and the community to collect the woodland caribou data as was agreed under the environmental assessment process before the Victor Project was approved,” she said.

She also said the community hunts the caribou - an important food source.

“Our goal, after combining the data we collect from the Aboriginal and scientific communities, is to come up with a group of recommendations to protect them so that they are available to use and enjoy in this area long into the future,” she said.

The funding approved by the province totals more than $312,000 and will support projects to implement recovery strategies for species at risk, track caribou using radio collars, undertake public outreach and education activities, and protect and restore essential habitat.

“I’m impressed with the leadership and commitment shown by environmental organizations, the forest industry, First Nations and others in northeastern Ontario who are helping to protect and recover our most vulnerable species and their habitats,” said Natural Resources Minister Donna Cansfield. “Working together we can reverse the rate of species decline in our province and ensure future generations enjoy and benefit from a healthy and diverse natural environment.”