Management Area
A Global Treasure
Few places on earth match the significance of the Muskwa-Kechika Management Area (M-KMA) in terms of raw beauty, isolation, biodiversity, wildlife, wilderness, natural resources and spiritual and cultural value. The Muskwa-Kechika (musk-quah-ke-chee-kah) Management Area is an innovative management system, named for two major rivers that flow through the area, that was developed through a public planning process. The names of the Muskwa and Kechika rivers are of First Nations origin.
Establishment
The M-KMA, located in north-eastern British Columbia (BC), was created as a world class management model, in legislation by the BC Government in 1998, following its conception during the BC Land and Resource Management Planning (LRMP) process.
Through the dedication and hard work of land and resource planning table members in Fort Nelson and Fort St. John, and later in Mackenzie, consensus was reached on land use in the Muskwa-Kechika area. They agreed that the area was unique, particularly due to its considerable size, largely unroaded nature and its cultural, ecological and geographical diversity and that it should be managed as a special management area.
The original size of the M-KMA was 4.45 million hectares however in 2000 with the approval of the Mackenzie LRMP over 1.9 million hectares were added to the M-KMA creating a total area of 6.4 million hectares.
The M-KMA Act and the M-KMA Management Plan, adopted through Order-in-Council, were created to provide guidance to managers in government agencies and non-government organisations, communities, and industry groups while conducting their activities in the M-KMA. As well, a public advisory board was appointed by the Premier to provide advice to government on planning and land use management, and a trust fund was established to fund projects.
Background
In the early 1990's, the BC government, as part of its Provincial Land Use Strategy, initiated a regional Land and Resource Management Planning (LRMP) process. The process was cooperative and consensus-based, involving people who represented varying perspectives from industry to conservation to cultural and spiritual values.
To ensure that land use and other human activities in the M-KMA would be managed to a higher standard than in elsewhere in the province and the world, the M-KMA Act and M-KMA Management Plan required the development of 5 "local strategic plans." These plans would provide direction to ensure appropriate management of activities and intensities of development for:
- Wildlife (M-KMA Wildlife Management Plan - under development)
- Oil and Gas (Pre-tenure Plans - approved)
- Recreation (Recreation Management Plan - under development)
- Forestry (Landscape Unit Objectives - ongoing development and approvals)
- Provincial Parks (Park Management Plans) under development and at approval stages
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