Photo: Rick Price

Alberta’s new draft sub-regional plans miss the mark for protecting caribou and nature

Four of Alberta’s largest environmental organizations have come together
to raise the alarm about the impact three draft government sub-regional plans — that
cover almost one-fifth of the province — will have on the future of the iconic woodland caribou.

Woodland caribou in Alberta continue to be profoundly harmed due to industry-caused habitat loss. Listed as Threatened under both Canada’s Species at Risk Act (SARA) and Alberta’s Wildlife Act, the original intent of sub-regional plans (SRPs) was for the province to demonstrate how woodland caribou populations would be conserved and recovered. The Government of Alberta released the Red Earth, Caribou Mountains, and Berland draft SRPs for public engagement without the evidence needed to demonstrate how woodland caribou conservation and recovery will be achieved. Caribou recovery is merely stated as a “goal” to reach in 100 years. This lack of information limits the public’s ability to provide meaningful feedback on long-lasting land use decisions that will impact vast regions of the province.

“These draft plans have failed caribou. They don’t meet Albertans’ expectations that
land use plans will address environmental, social and economic objectives at the same
time. Instead, what we are seeing is a prioritization of industry above all else,” says
Kaitlyn Philip, Campaign Director with Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society Northern Alberta.

The SRPs prioritize industrial development, including doubling oil and gas production
and expanding timber harvest, while missing any opportunity to provide meaningful,
long-term protection for caribou habitat. This disconnect highlights an overall lack of
concern for caribou.

“Caribou cannot wait 100 years for their habitat to reach 65 percent undisturbed. The
draft plans provide no supporting data demonstrating how their proposed industrial
development and restoration measures will achieve this objective within that timeline.
Given the urgency of caribou recovery, a 100-year objective without evidence that it can be achieved is not a credible path forward,” says Pamela Narváez-Torres, Conservation Specialist at Alberta Wilderness Association.

Alberta’s current SRP engagement runs counter to evidence-based policymaking, and it removes the public's ability to access transparent information on the implications of the plans. The lack of necessary analyses harms not only caribou, but also the broader ecosystem, wildlife, and communities as critical habitat becomes increasingly destroyed by influential industrial sectors.

“Responsible energy development means balancing oil and gas production with
maintaining adequate habitat for threatened species like caribou. These draft plans fail to meet this standard and need to be strengthened,” says Simon Dyer, Deputy Executive Director at Pembina Institute.

The window to provide feedback is only open until October 26, 2026 for the Caribou
Mountains and Red Earth plans, and November 12, 2026 for the Berland plan.
We call on the Government of Alberta to immediately release the necessary analyses to enable informed public review. If the analyses are not ready to be released,
engagement periods must be extended until after the data have been made publicly
available. Additionally, we call on the Government of Alberta to modify the draft SRPs to reflect these analyses and ensure land-use planning meets caribou recovery objectives.

“A process that develops sub-regional plans without the evidence needed to determine whether caribou habitat will recover is a process designed to fail Alberta’s remaining caribou populations,” says Cheryl Bozarth Soll, President of Nature Alberta.

Moving forward, future SRPs should not be released until all information required to
assess implications of the plans are provided.

For more information, please contact:
Pamela Narváez-Torres, Conservation Specialist, Alberta Wilderness Association:
cs2@abwild.ca
Cheryl Bozarth Soll, President, Nature Alberta: president@naturealberta.ca
Kaitlyn Philip, Campaign Director, CPAWS Northern Alberta: kphilip@cpaws.org
Simon Dyer, Deputy Executive Director, Pembina Institute: simond@pembina.org

Background:
Engagement Guide for the draft Berland, Caribou Mountains and Red Earth
sub-regional plans
● Woodland caribou were listed as Threatened under the federal Species at Risk
Act (SARA) in 2003. The federal Recovery Strategies for the Woodland Caribou
(Rangifer tarandus caribou), Boreal and Southern Mountain populations, in
Canada provided provincial and territorial jurisdictions an opportunity to develop
range plans to conserve and recover woodland caribou populations and their critical habitats, giving jurisdictions five years to develop and implement those
plans.
● In 2019, Alberta established ministerial sub-regional task forces to help develop
woodland caribou-focused land-use plans in five of Alberta’s 11 proposed
sub-regions. AWA and CPAWS NAB participated in these task forces and helped
develop recommendations intended to balance economic activities with caribou
conservation and recovery.
● The Governments of Canada and Alberta signed the Section 11 Agreement for
the Conservation and Recovery of the Woodland Caribou in Alberta under SARA
in October 2020. The five-year agreement committed Alberta to complete and
implement 11 sub-regional plans (SRPs), restore critical habitat, obtain at least
65 percent undisturbed habitat in each range, and achieve self-sustaining
caribou populations over the long term.
● Only three SRPs have been completed so far: Bistcho Lake (2022), Cold Lake
(2022, but now part of South Athabasca), and Upper Smoky (2025). The Section
11 Agreement expired at the end of 2025 without Alberta meeting its
commitments or demonstrating a credible path to caribou recovery. Four
additional draft SRPs have been released for public consultation since
December 2025: South Athabasca, Caribou Mountains, Red Earth, and Berland.
● The five caribou populations covered by the last five draft sub-regional plans are
already living in disturbed landscapes. As of 2023, undisturbed habitat
represented only 12.5 percent of the A La Peche winter range, 0.7 percent of the
Little Smoky winter range (both part of the Berland sub-region), 41.2 percent of
the Caribou Mountains range, 33 percent of the Yates range (both part of the
Caribou Mountains sub-region), and 21.4 percent of the Red Earth range. These
figures are far below the 65 percent undisturbed habitat threshold identified in
the federal recovery strategy as necessary to provide a 60 percent probability of
supporting self-sustaining caribou populations.

The post Joint Statement on Draft Regional Sub-plans first appeared on Nature Alberta.

Nature Alberta

Message History

Delivery option(s)