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March 2001
Government of Nunavut and the Northwest Territories
Canadian Heritage Rivers
Thelon River
Designated in 1990, the Thelon River flows from the Mackenzie District of the NWT northeast of Great Slave Lake, through the Thelon Wildlife Sanctuary, into Beverly, Aberdeen and Schultz Lakes and finally into Baker Lake (the geographic centre of Canada). The River lies in the heart of the mainland portion of Nunavut and is noteworthy for its pristine, undisturbed character. The corridor straddles the boundary between the NWT and Nunavut and crosses the boreal forest and the treeless tundra, adding significantly to the diversity of the biological character of the river corridor.
The Thelon River has been very important in the life and tradition5666s of Inuit and Dene. From the earliest inhabitants of the region, the corridor has been an important homeland and still provides a wealth of resources to sustain the people hunting and fishing along its banks.
It was only at the turn of the 20th century that the Thelon River became the focus as an area of tremendous natural history and the subject of northern conservation efforts, reflected today in the Thelon Wildlife Sanctuary. Established in 1927, the 52,000 km2 Sanctuary is one of the largest and most remote protected areas in Canada. This has significantly contributed to the pristine character of the area and the wealth of natural resource values associated with the river corridor. The Sanctuary and the river valley are home to the Beverly and Qamanirjuaq caribou, the second largest caribou herd in the world, as well as barrens grizzly, moose, and muskoxen. As well, the Thelon River and Sanctuary boast an incredible diversity of bird life, from peregrine and gyrfalcon, to bald and golden eagles, and a number of other raptors.
In 1999/00, the Government of Nunavut, Kivalliq Inuit Association, Nunavut Wildlife Management Board, and Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. met to finalize a management plan for the Sanctuary in keeping with the obligations under the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement . The plan recommends, among other things, the establishment of a co-management Advisory Committee made up of government and community representatives to consider such things as special management areas outside the Sanctuary, use and access, and other management and planning recommendations.
The Government of Nunavut recently completed a review of the original Management Plan for the River in conjunction with its ten-year Monitoring Report. While the Monitoring Report indicated no changes to its nomination values, the review of the Management Plan was undertaken to affirm that the goals still reflected those of the Government of Nunavut and the community of Baker Lake.
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