Nirjutiqavvik National Wildlife Area

Nirjutiqavvik National Wildlife Area
IUCN category Ib (wilderness area)
Rissa tridactyla nesting/flying at Coburg Island in Jones Sound. One Uria lomvia on cliff top (see annotation).
Location	Coburg Island, Qikiqtaaluk, Nunavut, Canada
Nearest city	Grise Fiord
Coordinates	75°57′00″N 79°18′00″W
Area	1,650 km2 (640 sq mi)
Established	1995

Nirjutiqavvik National Wildlife Area is a National Wildlife Area on Coburg Island within Qikiqtaaluk, Nunavut, Canada. It is located in Baffin Bay's Lady Ann Strait between Ellesmere Island, to the north, and Devon Island to the south. The NWA includes Coburg Island and its surrounding marine area.

It was established in 1995. Of its 1,650 km² (640 sq mi) in overall size, 1,283 km² (495 sq mi) are a marine area with marine and intertidal components.

The NWA is one of the most important seabird nesting areas in the Canadian Arctic for black guillemot, black-legged kittiwake, northern fulmar, and thick-billed murre. It is also an important area for polar bears, walruses, ringed seals, and bearded seals. beluga and narwhal whales migrate this area.

Lead

The Nirjutiqarvik National Wildlife Area (NNWA) is positioned 20 km off the south of Ellesmere Island in the eastern Jones Sound of Nunavut. The ocean is within a 10 km radius of the island, which contains Coburg Island and the Princess Charlotte Monument. The sanctuary is approximately 1,642 km². Geographically, Coburg Island comprises upland Canadian Shield terrain, coastal lowlands in the northwest, and Davis Highlands. Glaciers and icefields obscure 65% of the island. The other 35% consists of mountainous highlands with an elevation of 800 meters, which is similar to the conditions of the Princess Charlotte Monument. The Nirjutiqarvik National Wildlife Area is home to many seabird species and marine animals, providing essential nutrients to nearby Indigenous communities. The wildlife area is managed by the Inuit from Grise Fiord, a nearby community, along with other governmental entities. If business as usual continues, climate change and human activity will cause severe damage to the Nirjutiqarvik National Wildlife Area.

Management

In 1995 the Nirjutiqarvik National Wildlife Area was designed to protect and conserve seabirds and marine mammals. The Canadian Wildlife Service (CWS) of Environment, Climate Change Canada (ECCC), and Inuit from Grise Fiord, NU, co-manage the Wildlife Area as the Nirjutiqarvik Area Co-Management Committee (ACMC). The management was established in the Nunavut Settlement Area under the Inuit Impact and Benefit Agreement for National Wildlife Areas and Migratory Bird Sanctuaries (IIBA). The ACMC is responsible for all policy decisions, permits, research, visitor use, and protection of Nirjutiqarvik National Wildlife Area’s habitat and species.

The management of the Wildlife Area as per Articles of the currently established IIBA with respect to the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement (NCLA) requires the ACMC to keep the consideration and interest of all Inuit parties and peoples into account for all discussion and deliberation towards the NWAs and MBSs as per Article 3.2.20 (Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated, 2016). Article 3.3.5 also states that the policies proposed for NWAs and MBSs by the Canadian Government’s Minister of Environment must hear the council of the ACMC relevant to the issues that those policies affect. These Articles, in unison, allow the Inuit peoples of Nunavut to have a voice in the management and policies of NWAs and MBSs. The Inuit people's rights for land use pertain to Articles 5.2.1 and 5.2.2. They allow for the Inuit peoples to uphold the unrestricted right for Inuk people to have access to NWAs and MBSs to hunt the wildlife of the region without “any form of license, permit, tax or fee under the CWA or the MBCA”. (Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated, 2016) In conjunction to those 2 Articles of the IIBA, any motions to restrict the Inuit of their right to harvest in any way from the CWS must “consult NTI (Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated) and the relevant ACMC to find means other than regulation to resolve disputes regarding such activities”. (Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated, 2016)

First Nations

Nirjutiqavvik is the Inuktitut word for “the place of animals”.  Although no Indigenous people currently reside in the Nirjutiqavvik National Wildlife Area, the robust wildlife in the area makes it a special place for nearby Inuit communities. The Indigenous population at Grise Fiord, Canada's most northerly community located on southern Ellesmere island (approximately 100 km away), harvest much of their food from the sea, relying heavily on marine animals in the Nirjutiqavvik National Wildlife Area.  According to the Nunavut Agreement in Nunavut, only Nunavut Inuit can hunt wildlife.  This includes the collection of migratory bird eggs and feathers for Indigenous economic, social, and cultural needs. Nunavut Inuits have the free and unrestricted right of access to harvest all lands, waters, and marine areas within the Nirjutiqarvik National Wildlife Area as per article 5 of the IIBA and subject to s.5.7.18 of the Nunavut Agreement.

Species

The Nirjutiqarvik National Wildlife Area is home to keystone species like the Thick-billed murre, Black-legged kittiwake, and Northern fulmar.  The richness of the seabird population contributes to a primary reason why the protected area was created. Nirjutiqavvik National Wildlife Area contains 11% of Canada’s Thick-billed murres breeding population and 16% of the Black-legged kittiwakes.  About 385,000 seabirds nest on the steep coastal cliffs in Nirjutiqarvik.

The following species of seabird breed in Nirjutiqarvik National Wildlife Area:

• Atlantic puffin
• Northern fulmar
• Glaucous gull
• Black guillemot
• Common eider
• Long-tailed ducks

Canada's Species at Risk Act (SARA) lists the ivory gull, red knot, and polar bear as species at risk.  The Nirjutiqavvik National Wildlife Area is protected under Canadian law, which helps these species recover in the region.  A number of marine animals inhabit the waters of the Nirjutiqarvik National Wildlife Area, such as polar bears, walruses, belugas, narwhals, bowhead whales, and seals.

Climate Change

Climate change is a concerning threat to the Nirjutiqarvik National Wildlife Area. The Earth's atmosphere has warmed by 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit since 1900 and continues to increase.  Nirjutiqarvik glaciers and ice sheets are vulnerable to melting and contributing to the rising sea level, compromising the habitat of the species in the area. Global sea level has increased by eight inches over the past 100 years and continues to accelerate. Arctic sea ice extent since 1979 has declined by more than 30 percent (National Snow and Ice Data Center).  Precipitation patterns are shifting and have increased by about 5 to 20 percent during the last 50 years. The ocean is a significant sink of fossil fuel emissions, and its pH levels are estimated to increase by 0.5 units in 2100. The greater the average temperatures and change in precipitation patterns invite invasive species into new ecosystems. All effects of climate change create stress upon the Nirjutiqarvik ecosystems due to the destruction of the environment.  Human-induced hazards also threaten the wildlife area, such as commercial fisheries, military activity, mineral and hydrocarbon exploration, research, tourism, and marine transport.  Without laws and regulations that protect the land and animals, these activities could cause serious harm to the environment, Indigenous communities, and wildlife populations that inhabit the Nirjutiqarvik National Wildlife Area.

Other designations

Other conservation designations include International Biological Program site, Key Migratory Bird Terrestrial Habitat site (1984), Key Marine Habitat Area (2002), and Canadian Important Bird Area.

See also

• List of National Wildlife Areas in Canada