Wildlife Management & Conservation

Preserving our wildlife and our identity.

Thanks to the the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement (JBNQA) and the The Northeastern Quebec Agreement (NEQA), the Hunting, Fishing and Trapping Regime exists to recognize, protect and prioritize native harvesting rights on the territory.

The regime applies to terrestrial mammals, freshwater and anadromous fish, migratory birds, and marine mammals and grants the Cree, Inuit, and Naskapi beneficiaries the right to harvest any species of wildlife at anytime and anywhere in the territory to meet their subsistence needs. The beneficiaries also have the exclusive use of certain species like the beaver, bear, polar bear and sturgeon.

The Cree Nation defines conservation as follows:

“The pursuit of the optimum natural productivity of all living resources and the protection of the ecological systems of the territory so as to protect endangered species and to ensure [… ] the continuance of the traditional pursuits of the Native people [… ].”

The Hunting, Fishing and Trapping Coordinating Committee

The regime created the Hunting, Fishing and Trapping Coordinating Committee (HFTCC) that acts as an advisory body to the federal and provincial governments and local and regional Native authorities on all hunting, fishing, and trapping matters.

The HFTCC has been given the responsibility to review, manage, and in certain cases, supervise and regulate the regimes. It also participates with the responsible minister of Canada or Québec in the management of wildlife species in the territory, either through decisional or consultative recommendations as called for in each case.

The responsible Québec or federal government is obliged to consult the HFTCC and strives to follow HFTCC advice. For certain species such as the moose, caribou and black bear, the HFTCC has decisional powers to set the upper limit of kill and make management decisions as well.

The coordinating committee is composed of representatives from Inuit, Naskapi and Cree territory as well as provincial and federal representatives.

Cree members appointed to the committee are:

Willie Iserhoff
Isaac Voyageur
Kenneth Gilpin

Learn more about the Coordinating Committee and its activities at www.cccpp-hftcc.com.

Wildlife Management and Conservation Unit (WMCU)

The Wildlife Management and Conservation Unit (WMCU) protects healthy wildlife resources in Eeyou Istchee and safeguards Cree rights and interests.

The WMCU implements the Hunting, Fishing and Trapping Regime, takes part in both regular meetings and working groups, and also carries out much of the research and analysis needed to support continuing active Cree participation in wildlife management.

The WMCU is composed of the following defenders of wildlife:

Nadia Saganash
Wildlife Management Administrator

Aurélie Bourbeau-Lemieux
Wildlife Biologist

Emily Sinave
Wildlife Biologist (replacement)

Alan Penn
Senior Scientific Advisor

The Wildlife Unit also provides support, advice and representation on wildlife matters for the following entities:

The WMCU is part of the Environmental and Remedial Works Department.