Untitled Document

Trilateral Agreement

After a series of blockades, which garnered international attention, the Algonquins of Barriere Lake managed to bring Canada's Federal government to the table along with the government of Quebec. The three parties signed the Trilateral Agreement was signed on August 22, 1991. The agreement committed the federal and provincial government to work with the Algonquins in developing an integrated management plan for part of the traditional territory of the Barriere Lake people.

Just how important is the Agreement?

A United Nations report (September 30, 1997 UN Convention on Biological Diversity) described the Trilateral Agreement as a "trail blazer." The U.N. report pointed out six important features of the Trilateral Agreement:

It puts the doctrine of sustainable development into practice.
It establishes a real partnership between government and an indigenous community.
It blends traditional wisdom with modern development processes which helps to protect the environment.
It provides for a working partnership that fosters mutual respect between Canadians and Indigenous peoples.
It establishes an important scientific and technical experiment which will help amend forestry practices.
It creates an important educational and operational model, not only for Canada but the rest of the world.

What Are the Goals of the Trilateral Agreement?

The Trilateral Agreement was set up to create an Integrated Resource Management Plan (IRMP) that balances the needs of the Algonquin people with the various forestry companies operating in the territory. The Agreement determines the "measures to harmonize" modern forestry practices with Algonquin traditional activities.

How Is the Agreement To Be Implemented?

The agreement set out four phases of development:

Phase One: Studies and inventories of renewable natural resources within the territory.

Phase Two: preparation of a draft IRMP.

Phase Three: formulation of recommendations for carrying out the draft IRMP.

Phase Four: Negotiations between the Algonquins of Barriere Lake and Quebec on the implementation of the recommendations.

What is the Status of the Work Plan?

The Trilateral Agreement has undergone a number of politically-inspired interruptions which have slowed the process. However, significant advances have been made. A valuable body of scientific and traditional knowledge has been gathered. The draft IRMP for the first Gull Lake management area is ready and this will serve as a model for the other parts of the territory.

The agreement set out the obligation to identify sensitive areas of the forests, including sacred and critical wildlife habitat areas. This identification process was geared to the development of a conservation strategy of forestry and wildlife management -- a plan that would take the Algonquins into account, as well as the interests of the forestry industry, the tourist industry and nature lovers.

For more information on the details of the Trilateral Agreement go to: www.barrierelake.ca

(c) All information Copyright Algonquin Nation Secretariat

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