Protected and Conserved Areas in the Northwest Territories

The Northwest Territories has laid the foundation to advance its land conservation priorities

Report metadata

Tabling date:: May 21, 2025
Audited entities:: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Report type: Northern legislative assemblies reports

Protected and Conserved Areas in the Northwest Territories
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At a glance

Creating a strong network of protected and conservation areas helps governments foster the long-term health of the natural environment, conserve biodiversity, and sustain cultural practices and economic development. Through its 2023–28 Healthy Land, Healthy People work plan, the Government of the Northwest Territories has set priorities that include establishing new protected areas, supporting the effective management of existing areas, and securing long‑term funding for those initiatives.

We concluded that the government was on track to secure sustainable, long‑term funding for protected areas, in line with the renewed Healthy Land, Healthy People plan. In a pivotal first step, the government had worked collaboratively with Indigenous governments to successfully conclude the Northwest Territories Project Finance for Permanence, which created a long‑term financing model for Indigenous‑led conservation activities. This will serve as an important support for Indigenous governments in their efforts to steward the land.

The project will also better position the government and other partners to advance other priorities in Healthy Land, Healthy People, including planning and decision‑making on the establishment of protected areas, particularly in the Dınàga Wek’èhodi and Dehcho regions. We concluded, however, that the government still needed to develop an action plan and timelines to advance the decision‑making process for each candidate area.

We also found that the government’s efforts to develop more effective and equitable systems for managing protected and conservation areas were still in development. While progress was made to implement the plans, we found shortcomings, including a lack of structured monitoring of the implementation agreements and insufficient Indigenous representation in hiring processes.

While important steps have been taken to fund conservation efforts led by Indigenous governments, we found that the Department of Environment and Climate Change had not secured permanent funding to effectively sustain its own activities. This negatively affected the government’s ability to provide stable staffing and other resources to support conservation efforts and collaborate with Indigenous governments and Indigenous organizations.

Why we did this audit

Protection and conservation of biodiversity is vital for its inherent value and for maintaining essential ecosystem services and benefits, climate stability, and cultural heritage.
Reliable, sustainable funding for protected areas and conserved areas is essential to support remote communities over long distances and to overcome high operating costs.
Expanding the conservation network in the Northwest Territories brings greater confidence to all residents of the Northwest Territories and contributes toward national and international goals for biodiversity protection.

Highlights of our recommendations

Environment and Climate Change, supported by Executive and Indigenous Affairs, should collaborate with Indigenous governments representing Dınàgà Wek’èhodì and the 4 Dehcho region candidate areas to develop a plan of action and timelines to advance the decision‑making process for each candidate area.
Environment and Climate Change, Industry, Tourism and Investment, and Executive and Indigenous Affairs should collaborate with the management boards and parties to the establishment agreements of each territorial protected area.

Key facts and findings

As of 2023, the Northwest Territories had 15.8% of its terrestrial areas under protection, compared with 13.7% for Canada as a whole.
If Dınàgà Wek’èhodì and candidate protected areas in the Dehcho region become established protected areas, together these areas could represent up to an additional 23,521 square kilometres of protected land and inland water in the Northwest Territories, which amounts to 1.7% of the total area of the Northwest Territories.
In the 2023–24 fiscal year, about 41% of funding for the conservation network expenditures came from annual federal funding.

Exhibit highlights

The terrestrial conservation network in the Northwest Territories

Source: Adapted from an Environment and Climate Change map

The percentage of land and inland water conserved in the Northwest Territories compared with land and inland water conserved in all of Canada, 1990 to 2023

Source: Based on data from Environment and Climate Change and the Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database

Most Priority Outcome 2 milestones were partially completed by the Government of the Northwest Territories

Objective number	Objective	Milestone	Assessment
2.1	Develop regulations for Thaıdene Nëné Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area (IPCA) and Territorial Protected Area and implement regulations for Ts’udé Nilįné Tuyeta IPCA and Territorial Protected Area	Finalize regulations for Thaıdene Nëné^{Footnote *} and draft policies for both Ts’udé Nilįné Tuyeta and Thaıdene Nëné	Milestone partially completed
2.2	Assist with the responsibilities of protected area and conservation area management boards	Complete the first management plans for both Ts’udé Nilįné Tuyeta and Thaıdene Nëné	Milestone not yet completed
2.2	Assist with the responsibilities of protected area and conservation area management boards	The Government of the Northwest Territories administrative processes are in place to implement the regulations and establishment agreements	Milestone partially completed
2.3	Work with territorial protected area management boards to monitor protected areas to establish a current baseline	Develop and deliver monitoring programs for each established protected area	Milestone partially completed
2.4	Support the development and implementation of Guardians programs	Provide funding, training, or other in-kind support for Guardians programs in protected areas and conservation areas when requested and as available	Milestone partially completed
Footnote * Regulations for Ts’udé Nilįné Tuyeta were established prior to the development of the 2023–28 version of the Healthy Land, Healthy People work plan. Return to footnote * referrer

Source: Based on our analysis of information from Healthy Land, Healthy People: GNWT Priorities for the Northwest Territories Conservation Network 2023–2028, Government of the Northwest Territories

Funding sources for the conservation network's expenditures in the 2023-24 fiscal year

Source: Based on data from Environment and Climate Change

The Government of the Northwest Territories was on track to advance a key goal of the renewed Healthy Land, Healthy People plan but needed to implement changes to achieve 2 other goals.

Protection and conservation of biodiversity is vital for its inherent value and for maintaining essential ecosystem services and benefits, climate stability, and cultural heritage.

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