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Local area planning for Fish Lake announced

The Government of Yukon and Kwanlin Dün First Nation (KDFN) announced in a joint press release Jan. 14 that they are in the beginning stages of a local area planning process for the Łu Zil Män (Fish Lake) area.
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The Fish Lake area viewed from the top of Haeckel Hill on Sept. 11, 2018. The Yukon government and Kwanlin Dün First Nation (KDFN) announced they are in the beginning stages of a local area planning process for the area. (Crystal Schick/Yukon News file)

The Government of Yukon and Kwanlin Dün First Nation (KDFN) announced in a joint press release Jan. 14 that they are in the beginning stages of a local area planning process for the Łu Zil Män (Fish Lake) area.

The purpose of local area planning is to designate areas for specific land uses and help define a community’s vision for the future. Once approved, the plan will guide decision-making in the area through recommendations for managing both existing and future uses.

The plan for the area will identify public land and KDFN settlement lands for residential use, traditional use and community development.

“This is the first local area planning process to take place under Kwanlin Dün First Nation’s newly enacted Lands Act Nan kay sháwthän Däk’anúta ch’e (We look after our land),” said KDFN Chief Doris Bill in the press release. “It signifies another step forward in our First Nation’s self-determination.”

The process was initiated in March 2020, in accordance with Section 30 of KDFN’s Self-Government Agreement, when the two governments signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the development planning process.

“The local area planning process is invaluable in guiding land development and reducing land use conflicts in an area,” said Energy, Mines, and Resources Minister Ranj Pillai in the joint press release. “The process provides local residents and those with strong ties to the area with the opportunity to influence the decisions about land use and ensures broad public interests are taken into consideration.”

Consultations with the public, stakeholders and First Nation citizens will come in the form of a steering committee comprised of three representatives from each participating government and six residents of the area. It is through the steering committee’s public engagements that recommendations in the plan will be developed.

Residents interested in becoming members of the steering committee can submit a letter of interest to larissa.lychenko@yukon.ca by 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 15.

Contact Crystal Schick at crystal.schick@yukon-news.com