Tungavik Federation of Nunavut (NTI)
The Claim
The Nunavut Land Claim involves the largest number of claimants and the largest geographic area of any land claim in Canada. There are approximately 19,000 Inuit in the central and eastern Northwest Territories. The Nunavut Settlement Area include some 1.9 million square kilometres of the Northwest Territories (one-fifth of the total land mass of Canada). Inuit constitute over 80% of the population in the Nunavut Settlement Area.
In exchange for ceding, releasing, and surrendering to Canada, all of their Aboriginal Claims, rights, title, and interests, the Agreement provides the Inuit of Nunavut with(among other things):
- title to 350,000 square kilometres (136,000 square miles) of land
- joint management (with Canada) for land use, wildlife, environmental assessment, and water regulation wildlife harvesting rights
- financial compensation of $580 million in 1989 dollars (amounts to $1.48 billion over payment period)
- a share of government royalties for oil, gas, and mineral development on Crown Land
In addition the new Territory of Nunavut was created April 1, 1999.
The Survey
UGL was involved in 19 surveys of this claim from 1994 to 2003. All surveys were done in conjunction with the Kitikmeot Corporation, an organization responsible for the promotion of economic development in the Kitikmeot Region of Nunavut.