Demand action on caribou habitat

Southern mountain caribou are a threatened species, and they're disappearing fast. In southern British Columbia, nearly half of all herds have already been lost as the old and ancient forests they depend are clearcut and fragmented. Protecting the remaining herds starts with knowing where their critical habitats are — yet more than a decade after they were legally required to do so, the federal government still hasn't fully mapped these areas.

Canada is failing to meet its legal responsibilities under the Species At Risk Act. And while Canada delays, over 310,000 hectares of southern mountain caribou habitat have been logged in southern and central B.C. alone. Until critical habitat maps are finalized, proper protections can’t be enforced, and this logging will continue. Enough is enough. It’s time for Canada to live up to its responsibility to protect threatened and endangered species.

Wildsight, as part of a collaboration of environmental groups, is sueing the federal government over its inaction, and asking the court to declare the delay unlawful. Join us in telling Minister Dabrusin and Environment Canada that it’s time for action.

We’re calling on Minister Dabrusin and Environment Canada to:

Finalize critical habitat maps for southern mountain caribou
Incorporate these maps into an amended federal recovery strategy
Release an action plan that details how the recovery plan objectives will be achieved — particularly those relating to habitat protection
Work with British Columbia to prioritize the immediate protection of deep-snow caribou habitat.

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To: The Honourable Minister Dabrusin, Minister of Environment, Climate Change and Nature

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Dear Minister Dabrusin,

I am calling on your government to take action for southern mountain caribou. Please finalize critical habitat mapping, amend the recovery strategy, and help to protect their habitat. 
 
Over the last 20 years, eight of 18 Southern Group herds have been extirpated. This includes the Southern Purcell, Central Purcell, Southern Selkirks, Monashee, Columbia South, Frisby Boulder (functionally extirpated) and Central Rockies herds in the Kootenay and Columbia region — as well as the George Mountain herd further north.

During that same period, over 310,000 hectares of habitat for this SARA-listed threatened species have been logged in B.C. alone. The continued loss of these old and primary forests will make future recovery efforts more costly and difficult, and will result in the extirpation of more herds. It will also result in the loss of some of the most biodiverse, carbon-rich temperate rainforests in the world, along with other threatened species such as rare lichens and plants.

An amended recovery strategy that includes finalized critical habitat mapping is essential for the protection of caribou. Once the recovery strategy has been updated, it must be followed by an action plan that details how the recovery strategy objectives will be achieved — particularly those relating to habitat protection.

Your government has the draft maps, the federal recovery strategy and the authority under the Species At Risk Act. Please commit to finally making the protection of southern mountain caribou a reality before we lose B.C.’s deep-snow caribou forever. Take this opportunity to leave a legacy — for these iconic animals, and for future generations of Canadians.

Sincerely,

Demand action on caribou habitat — no more delays

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