SUMMARY

The purpose of this enactment is to revise and consolidate the National Parks Act and, in particular, to

    (a) provide a procedure for the future establishment of new parks and the enlargement of existing ones;

    (b) add several new parks and park reserves and adjust the land descriptions of certain existing parks;

    (c) enhance protection for wildlife and other park resources;

    (d) provide for the continuation of traditional resource harvesting activities in keeping with comprehensive land claim agreements and federal-provincial agreements to establish parks;

    (e) fix the boundaries of communities in parks and restrict commercial development in those communities; and

    (f) make miscellaneous technical and housekeeping amendments.

EXPLANATORY NOTES

Contraventions Act

Clause 47: This amendment would repeal an amendment to the existing National Parks Act that has been enacted but is not yet in force.

An Act to amend the Financial Administration Act and other Acts in consequence thereof

Clause 48: This amendment would repeal an amendment to the existing National Parks Act that has been enacted but is not yet in force.

Canada Lands Surveys Act

Clause 49: The relevant portion of subsection 24(1) reads as follows:

24. (1) In this Part, ``Canada Lands'' means

    (a) any lands belonging to Her Majesty in right of Canada or of which the Government of Canada has power to dispose that are situated in the Yukon Territory, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut or in any National Park of Canada and any lands that are

Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act

Clause 50: The definition ``Mackenzie Valley'' in section 2 reads as follows:

``Mackenzie Valley'' means that part of the Northwest Territories bounded on the south by the 60th parallel of latitude, on the west by the Yukon Territory, on the north by the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, as defined in the Agreement given effect by the Western Arctic (Inuvialuit) Claims Settlement Act, and on the east by the Nunavut Settlement Area, as defined in the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act, but does not include Wood Buffalo National Park.

Clause 51: Section 34 reads as follows:

34. Subject to subsection 46(2), this Part does not apply in respect of lands in a settlement area that comprise a national park to which the National Parks Act applies, that have been acquired pursuant to the Historic Sites and Monuments Act or that are situated within the boundaries of a local government.

Clause 52: Subsection 46(2) reads as follows:

(2) In particular, measures carried out by a department or agency of government leading to the establishment of a national park subject to the National Parks Act, and the acquisition of lands pursuant to the Historic Sites and Monuments Act, in a settlement area shall be carried out in accordance with the applicable land use plan.

Clause 53: Subsection 52(1) reads as follows:

52. (1) This Part, except sections 78 and 79, does not apply in respect of the use of land or waters or the deposit of waste within a national park to which the National Parks Act applies or within lands acquired pursuant to the Historic Sites and Monuments Act.

Clause 54: The relevant portion of subsection 78(1) reads as follows:

78. (1) Where a board established for a settlement area determines that a use of waters or a deposit of waste that is proposed, in an application made to a water authority, to be carried out in

    . . .

    (b) a national park to which the National Parks Act applies, or lands acquired pursuant to the Historic Sites and Monuments Act, in the settlement area

would be likely to substantially alter the quality, quantity or rate of flow of waters when on or flowing through first nation lands of the Gwich'in or Sahtu First Nation or waters adjacent to those first nation lands, the board shall notify the water authority in writing of its determination.

Clause 55: The definition ``development'' in section 111 reads as follows:

``development'' means any undertaking, or any part of an undertaking, that is carried out on land or water and, except where the context otherwise indicates, wholly within the Mackenzie Valley, and includes measures carried out by a department or agency of government leading to the establishment of a national park subject to the National Parks Act and an acquisition of lands pursuant to the Historic Sites and Monuments Act.

Municipal Grants Act

Clause 56: The relevant portion of subsection 2(3) reads as follows:

(3) For the purposes of the definition ``federal property'' in subsection (1), federal property does not include

    . . .

    (b) any real property developed and used as a park and situated within an area defined as ``urban'' by Statistics Canada, as of the most recent census of the population of Canada taken by Statistics Canada, other than any real property acquired pursuant to the National Parks Act or the Historic Sites and Monuments Act or any real property that is occupied or used as a park and has been prescribed to be included in the definition ``federal property'' pursuant to paragraph 9(1)(d),

Northwest Territories Waters Act

Clause 57: Subsection 2.1(1) reads as follows:

2.1 (1) This Act does not apply in respect of the use of waters or the deposit of waste in a national park to which the National Parks Act applies, or on any land acquired for the purposes of the Historic Sites and Monuments Act, that is situated within a settlement area for which a land and water board is established by Part 3 of the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act.

Parks Canada Agency Act

Clause 58: The definitions ``national historic site'' and ``national park'' in section 2 read as follows:

``national historic site'' means a place designated under subsection (2).

``national park'' includes a park as defined in section 2 of the National Parks Act.

Clause 59: Subsection 32(1) reads as follows:

32. (1) In addition to the duties in relation to management plans for parks under the National Parks Act, the Chief Executive Officer shall, within five years after the establishment of a national historic site or other protected heritage area, or within five years after the date that this section comes into force, whichever is later, provide the Minister with a management plan for that national historic site or other protected heritage area in respect of any matter that the Minister deems appropriate, including, but not limited to, commemorative and ecologi cal integrity, resource protection or visitor use, and that plan shall be tabled in each House of Parliament.

Clause 60: Section 45 reads as follows:

45. Any person who, or any person within a class of persons that, is designated by the Minister under subsection 5(2.1) of the National Parks Act before the coming into force of section 56 and who, immediately after the coming into force of that section, is an employee is deemed to have been designated under that subsection after the coming into force of that section.

Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park Act

Clause 64: The definition ``park warden'' in section 2 reads as follows:

``park warden'' means a person appointed under the Parks Canada Agency Act whose duties include the enforcement of this Act or the National Parks Act and who is designated by the Minister as a park warden.

Clause 65: Subsection 7(1) reads as follows:

7. (1) A notice of intention to make an order to change park boundaries shall be tabled in the House of Commons and, on being tabled, is referred to the committee of that House that normally considers national parks matters, or to any other committee to which the House refers matters for the purpose of this section, if the intention is to reduce the area of the park, or of any zone of the park, other than a reduction of the area of a Type III or Type IV zone by one square kilometre or less.

Territorial Lands Act

Clause 66: Subsection 3(3) reads as follows:

(3) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as limiting the operation of the Yukon Quartz Mining Act, the Yukon Placer Mining Act, the Dominion Water Power Act or the National Parks Act.

Yukon Placer Mining Act

Clause 67: The relevant portion of subsection 17(2) reads as follows:

(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to lands

    (a) to which the National Parks Act applies;