Still no plan on future of Lake Superior caribou
Dec 29, 2020 09:12AM ● By Editor
From CBC News ยท December 28, 2020
Three years after an emergency airlift to isolated islands on Lake Superior, there are still concerns about the future of the world's southernmost caribou herd.
Michipicoten First Nation is calling on the province to do an aerial survey of the last few remaining caribou on the mainland.
Caribou coordinator Leo Lepiano says he's hoping they too can be flown to either Caribou Island or the Slate Islands, where other caribou have been multiplying safely away from predators.
Lepiano says time is running out and the survey needs to be done this winter.
"I don't like the antagonism. I don't like always being up against a deadline," Lepiano said.
"What I would like to see is people coming together, meeting, listening to each other, yelling, hugging, whatever it takes and coming up with a plan."
Lepiano says the province has resisted discussions of one day moving more caribou to the mainland. He suspects that's partly because of political pressure.
"Communities that are dependent on the forest industry have come to see caribou as the enemy of the forest industry," Lepiano said.
"We think that if you have sustainably managed forests, you have caribou and you have jobs."
In an email to CBC News, the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks states it is aware of the challenges facing the Lake Superior Coast Range caribou population.
Preserving the herd is an "important issue" for the ministry and it is currently working on a management plan.
The statement also says the ministry is collecting comments from stakeholders, Indigenous communities and the public to form that plan for the future of the herd.
To see the original post and read related reports, follow this link to the CBC News website. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/lake-superior-caribou-population-plan-1.5853064
