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Mackenzie Valley Land Use Regulations (SOR/98-429)

Regulations are current to 2024-03-06 and last amended on 2017-06-20. Previous Versions

Mackenzie Valley Land Use Regulations

SOR/98-429

MACKENZIE VALLEY RESOURCE MANAGEMENT ACT

Registration 1998-08-26

Mackenzie Valley Land Use Regulations

P.C. 1998-1493  1998-08-26

Whereas the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development has consulted with the first nations regarding the annexed regulations;

Therefore, His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, pursuant to section 59, subsection 72(3) and sections 86 and 90 of the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management ActFootnote a, hereby makes the annexed Mackenzie Valley Land Use Regulations.

Interpretation

 The definitions in this section apply in these Regulations.

Act

Act means the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act. (Loi)

airport

airport means an airport as defined in subsection 3(1) of the Aeronautics Act. (aéroport)

Board

Board means

  • (a) in respect of a use of land that is to take place, and is likely to have an impact, wholly within the area described in appendix A to the Gwich’in Agreement, the Gwich’in Land and Water Board;

  • (b) in respect of a use of land that is to take place, and is likely to have an impact, wholly within the area described in appendix A to the Sahtu Agreement, the Sahtu Land and Water Board;

  • (c) in respect of a use of land that is to take place, and is likely to have an impact, wholly within Wekeezhii, the Wekeezhii Land and Water Board; or

  • (d) in respect of a use of land that is to take place, or is likely to have an impact, in more than one management area, or in a management area and an area outside any management area, or that is to take place wholly outside any management area, the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board. (Office)

crossing

crossing means a bridge, causeway or structure designed to enable persons, vehicles or machinery to cross a watercourse or to cross above or below a road, or any associated embankment, cutting, excavation, land clearing or other work. (passage)

Dominion Geodesist

Dominion Geodesist means the Dominion Geodesist and Director of the Geodetic Survey of the Department of Natural Resources. (géodésien fédéral)

federal public lands

federal public lands means lands belonging to Her Majesty in right of Canada or lands that Her Majesty has the power to dispose of, other than such lands the administration and control of which have been transferred by the Governor in Council to the Commissioner of the Northwest Territories. (terres domaniales fédérales)

geophysical survey

geophysical survey means an investigation carried out on the surface of the ground to determine the nature and structure of the subsurface. (levé géophysique)

landowner

landowner means

  • (a) in respect of settlement lands, Tlicho lands, Déline lands or other private lands, the title holder; and

  • (b) in respect of any other lands, the minister of the Crown or the Commissioner of the Northwest Territories, as the case may be, who has administration and control of the lands. (propriétaire des terres)

land-use operation

land-use operation means any use of land that requires a permit. (projet d’utilisation des terres)

line

line means a route used to give surface access to land for the purpose of carrying out a geophysical, geological or engineering survey. (voie d’accès)

minerals

minerals means precious and base metals and other non-living, naturally occurring substances, and includes coal, oil and gas. (minéraux)

monument

monument means a post, stake, peg, mound, pit, trench or other object used to officially mark the boundary of surveyed lands or placed for a topographic, geodetic or cadastral purpose. (borne)

person-day

person-day, in respect of a campsite, means the use of the campsite by one person during the course of one day. (jour-personne)

road

road means

  • (a) the area bounded by lines parallel to, and 30 m on either side of, the centre line of a highway established by an order of the Commissioner made pursuant to the Northwest Territories Public Highways Act or any other instrument;

  • (b) a place, bridge or other structure that the public is ordinarily entitled or permitted to use for the passage of vehicles during any part of the year; or

  • (c) a sidewalk, pathway, ditch, shoulder or parking area adjacent to an area referred to in paragraph (a) or to a place, bridge or other structure referred to in paragraph (b). (route)

rock trenching

rock trenching means an excavation carried out on a mineral claim to obtain geological information. (forage dans le roc)

spud-in

spud-in means an initial penetration of the ground for the purpose of drilling a well. (percée)

Surveyor General

Surveyor General has the same meaning as in subsection 2(1) of the Canada Lands Surveys Act. (arpenteur général)

territorial park

territorial park has the same meaning as in section 1 of the Territorial Parks Act, R.S.N.W.T. 1988, c. T-4. (parc territorial)

Type A permit

Type A permit means a permit required for an activity set out in section 4. (permis de type A)

Type B permit

Type B permit means a permit required for an activity set out in section 5. (permis de type B)

Type C permit

Type C permit means a permit required by a Tlicho law for a use of Tlicho lands or by a Déline law for a use of Déline lands, respectively, for which a Type A or Type B permit is not required. (permis de type C)

watercourse

watercourse means a natural body of flowing or standing water or an area occupied by water during part of the year, and includes streams, springs, swamps and gulches but does not include groundwater. (cours d’eau)

  • 1998, c. 14, s. 101(F)
  • SOR/2006-253, s. 1
  • SOR/2013-166, s. 1(F)
  • SOR/2016-128, s. 1
  • SOR/2017-134, s. 2(F)

Application

  •  (1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3) and section 42, these Regulations apply to all uses of land in the Mackenzie Valley.

  • (2) These Regulations do not apply to a use of land authorized pursuant to grazing or agricultural leases subsequent to its initial clearing.

  • (3) For greater certainty, subject to any Tlicho law or Déline law referred to in section 90.1 or 90.11 of the Act, respectively, these Regulations do not apply to the following activities, unless they require the use of equipment or material referred to in section 4 or 5:

    • (a) harvesting and the construction and occupation of cabins and camps for the purpose of harvesting, within the meaning of a land claim agreement,

    • (b) hunting, trapping or fishing,

    • (c) anything done in the course of prospecting, staking or locating a mineral claim.

  • SOR/2006-253, s. 2
  • SOR/2016-128, s. 2

 [Repealed, SOR/2013-166, s. 2]

Prohibitions

 No person shall, without a Type A permit, carry on any activity that involves

  • (a) on land outside the boundaries of a local government,

    • (i) the use of a quantity of explosives equal to or exceeding 150 kg in any 30-day period,

    • (ii) the use of a vehicle or machine of a weight equal to or exceeding 10 t, other than on a road or on a community landfill, quarry site or airport,

    • (iii) the use of a single container for the storage of petroleum fuel that has a capacity equal to or exceeding 4 000 L,

    • (iv) the use of a self-propelled motorized machine for moving earth or clearing land, or

    • (v) the levelling, grading, clearing, cutting or snowploughing of a line, trail or right-of-way, other than a road or existing access trail to a building, that exceeds 1.5 m in width and 4 ha in area, for a purpose other than the grooming of recreational trails; or

  • (b) on land within or outside the boundaries of a local government,

    • (i) the use of motorized earth-drilling machinery the operating weight of which, excluding the weight of drill rods, stems, bits, pumps and other ancillary equipment, equals or exceeds 2.5 t, for a purpose other than the drilling of holes for building piles or utility poles or the setting of explosives within the boundaries of the local government,

    • (ii) the use of a campsite outside a territorial park for a duration of or exceeding 400 person-days,

    • (iii) the establishment of a petroleum fuel storage facility with a capacity equal to or exceeding 80 000 L, or

    • (iv) the use of a stationary motorized machine, other than a power saw, for hydraulic prospecting, moving earth or clearing land.

  • SOR/2013-166, s. 3

 No person shall, without a Type B permit, carry on any activity that involves

  • (a) on land outside the boundaries of a local government,

    • (i) the use of a quantity of explosives equal to or exceeding 50 kg, but less than 150 kg, in any 30-day period,

    • (ii) the use of a vehicle the net vehicle weight of which equals or exceeds 5 t but is less than 10 t or the use of a vehicle of any weight that exerts a pressure on the ground equal to or exceeding 35 kPa, other than on a road or within a community landfill, quarry site or airport,

    • (iii) the establishment of a petroleum fuel storage facility with a capacity that equals or exceeds 4 000 L but is less than 80 000 L,

    • (iv) the use of a single container for the storage of petroleum fuel that has a capacity that equals or exceeds 2 000 L but is less than 4 000 L,

    • (v) the levelling, grading, clearing, cutting or snowploughing of any line, trail or right-of-way, other than a road or existing access trail to a building, that exceeds 1.5 m in width but does not exceed 4 ha in area, for a purpose other than the grooming of recreational trails, or

    • (vi) the construction of a building with a footprint of more than 100 m2 and a height of more than 5 m; or

  • (b) on land within or outside the boundaries of a local government,

    • (i) the use of motorized earth-drilling machinery the operating weight of which, excluding the weight of drill rods, stems, bits, pumps and other ancillary equipment, equals or exceeds 500 kg but is less than 2.5 t, for a purpose other than the drilling of holes for building piles or utility poles or the setting of explosives within the boundaries of a local government, or

    • (ii) the use of a campsite outside a territorial park for a duration of or exceeding 200 person-days but less than 400 person-days.

  • SOR/2013-166, s. 4(E)

 Unless expressly authorized by a permit or in writing by an inspector, no permittee shall

  • (a) conduct a land-use operation within 30 m of a known monument or of a known or suspected historic or archaeological site or burial site;

  • (b) excavate land within 100 m of a watercourse at a point that is below its ordinary high-water mark;

  • (c) deposit excavated material on the bed of a watercourse; or

  • (d) place a fuel or supply cache within 100 m of a watercourse at a point that is below the ordinary high-water mark of that watercourse.

  • SOR/2013-166, s. 5
  • SOR/2016-128, s. 3(E)

Small Fuel Caches

 Every person who establishes a fuel cache, outside the boundaries of a local government, of a volume that equals or exceeds 410 L but does not exceed 4 000 L shall, within 30 days after its establishment, give the Board written notice of the location, amount and type of fuel, the size of containers used, the method of storage and the proposed date of removal of the cache.

  • SOR/2016-128, s. 18(F)

Excavation

 Unless otherwise authorized by a permit or in writing by an inspector, every permittee shall replace all materials removed by the permittee in the course of excavating, other than rock trenching, and shall level and compact the area of the excavation.

Watercourse Crossings

  •  (1) [Repealed, SOR/2013-166, s. 6]

  • (2) Unless otherwise authorized by a permit or in writing by an inspector, every permittee shall, before the completion of the land-use operation or the commencement of spring break-up, whichever occurs first,

    • (a) remove any material or debris deposited in a watercourse in the course of a land-use operation, whether for the purpose of constructing a crossing or otherwise; and

    • (b) restore the channel and bed of the watercourse to their original alignment and cross-section.

  • SOR/2013-166, s. 6

Clearing of Lines, Trails or Rights-of-way

 Unless expressly authorized by a permit, no permittee shall

  • (a) clear a new line, trail or right-of-way where an existing line, trail or right-of-way can be used;

  • (b) clear a line, trail or right-of-way that is wider than 10 m; or

  • (c) on clearing a line, trail or right-of-way, leave leaners or debris in standing timber.

Monuments

  •  (1) Where a boundary monument is damaged, destroyed, moved or altered during a land-use operation, a permittee shall report the fact immediately to the Surveyor General.

  • (2) Where a topographic or geodetic monument is damaged, destroyed or altered during a land-use operation, the permittee shall report the fact immediately to the Dominion Geodesist.

  • 1998, c. 14, s. 101(F)

Historic or Archeological Sites and Burial Sites

[
  • SOR/2013-166, s. 7
  • SOR/2016-128, s. 4(E)
]

 If, in the course of a land-use operation, a suspected historic or archaeological site or burial site is discovered,

  • (a) the permittee shall immediately suspend operations on the site and notify the Board or an inspector; and

  • (b) the Board or inspector shall notify any affected First Nation, the Tlicho Government if the operation is taking place in the part of Monfwi Gogha De Niitlee that is in the Northwest Territories, the Déline Got’ine Government if the operation is taking place on Déline lands, and the department of the Government of the Northwest Territories responsible for the location of the site and consult them regarding the nature of the materials, structures or artifacts and any further actions to be taken.

  • SOR/2006-253, s. 3
  • SOR/2016-128, ss. 5, 18(F)
  • SOR/2017-134, s. 2(F)

Orders of Inspector

 Where an inspector makes an order under subsection 86(1) of the Act, the inspector shall file a copy of the order with the Board without delay.

  • SOR/2016-128, s. 18(F)

Campsites

  •  (1) Unless otherwise authorized by a permit or in writing by an inspector, every permittee shall dispose of all garbage, waste and debris from any campsite used in connection with a land-use operation by removal, burning or burial.

  • (2) [Repealed, SOR/2013-166, s. 8]

  • SOR/2013-166, s. 8
 

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