Management Planning for Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother M'Nidoo M'Nissing Protected Area

Description of policy

The MNR is proposing to amend the District Land Use Guidelines and Crown Land Use Atlas to include a recommended protected area.

Protected areas represent Ontario's natural and cultural heritage, and protect its natural and cultural landscapes and features while providing the people of Ontario and visitors with a variety of recreational and tourism opportunities. The Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) purchased lands (6,600 ha) on Manitoulin Island in 1999 in Dawson and Robinson townships to establish a protected area. The NCC refers to the property as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother M'Nidoo M'Nissing Protected Area. The site contains provincially significant natural heritage features including extensive alvar and pockets of Great Lakes dune grasslands. Located on the western end, on the south shore of Manitoulin Island, the property is approximately 200 kilometres west of Sudbury.

MNR and NCC have entered into a lease agreement to, among other things, complete a management plan and manage a new protected area on Manitoulin Island. For planning and management purposes NCC and MNR have described a planning area that includes patent lands owned by NCC as above and adjacent Crown land road and shoreline allowances as making up the protected area. NCC and MNR will use the management planning process to confirm the approach to regulate the protected area. Management planning is guided by Ontario Provincial Parks Planning and Management Policies (1992), Ontario Provincial Parks Planning Manual (1994), and related policies. Public consultation will occur throughout the planning process with the following stages: terms of reference, background information and management options, preliminary management plan, and approved management plan.

The approved management plan will establish a goal, objectives and long term direction for the protection and management of the natural, cultural and recreation features of the protected area. Once approved, the Park Management Plan for Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother M'Nidoo M'Nissing Protected Area may be reviewed or amended to address changing issues or conditions.

Purpose of policy

To undertake planning to establish policies for Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother M'Nidoo M'Nissing Protected Area to guide protection, management and operation of this area for 20 years. In concert with this planning will be an amendment of the Espanola District Land Use Guidelines (DLUG) and Crown Land Use Atlas to reflect land use designation and permitted uses of the protected area as a management area within the DLUG.

Other information

This Notice of Proposal coincides with an invitation to participate, and the formal notice of the opportunity to inspect the approved terms of reference. It is the first of four stages in the planning process. In turn, the terms of reference will be followed by: background information, management options, the preliminary management plan, and the final management plan. Copies of the terms of reference can be obtained from the government offices listed below.

Invitations to review the terms of reference will be mailed to individuals, communities and organizations on the mailing list, including First Nations, stakeholders and other interested parties. Those wishing to review any background information, or to have their name added to the mailing list, may contact the person listed below.

For any subsequent proposal for a regulation under the Provincial Parks Act to designate the area, MNR will comply with the relevant Environmental Assessment Act requirements.

In addition to the government offices listed below, information concerning the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother M'Nidoo M'Nissing Protected Area may also be obtained from:

Nature Conservancy of Canada

R.R. #5 5420 Highway 6 North

Guelph, Ontario, N1H 6J2

Phone: (519) 826-0068 Fax: (519) 826-9206

Toll-free: 1-877-343-3532

Other public consultation opportunities

Individuals responding to this first stage of planning who were not on the mailing list and want to be included will also be added to the mailing list, and will be informed of the next stage of planning. Direct mailing to this contact list will ensure that all stakeholders are advised of the process. Newspaper notices will appear in the following local newspapers: The Recorder and Manitoulin Expositor out of Gore Bay and Little Current respectively for every stage.

A comment sheet will be available at each stage for public input and submissions will be directed to the Planning Team. Copies of all documents will be available to the public. Planning documents will be available to view online at www.ontarioparks.com/english/invit.html.

The following are opportunities for the public to participate in the planning process:

Stage One - Invitation to Participate / Terms of Reference - Summer 2003

Stage Two - Background Information and Management Options Documents - Summer 2003

Stage Three - Preliminary Management Plan - Winter 2003

Stage Four - Approved Management Plan - Fall 2004