Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, National Marine Conservation Area, and Haida Heritage Site, usually referred to simply as Gwaii Haanas (), is located in southernmost Haida Gwaii (formerly known as Queen Charlotte Islands), off the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. Gwaii Haanas protects an archipelago of 138 islands, the largest being Moresby Island and the southernmost being Kunghit Island. "Gwaii Haanas" means "Islands of Beauty" in , the language of the Haida people. The Haida Heritage Site is within the territory of the Haida people, who have lived in Haida Gwaii for at least 14,000 years. (the Haida canon of oral histories) say Haida lived in Gwaii Haanas when the first trees arrived at (Bolkus Islands) as glaciers retreated. Pollen samples indicate trees first arrived 14,500 years ago. Numerous films have covered Gwaii Haanas, including the 2011 short ''

National Parks Project The National Parks Project is a Canadian music and film project. Released in 2011 to mark the 100th anniversary of the creation of the National Parks of Canada system,Scott Smith and scored by

Sarah Harmer Sarah Harmer (born November 12, 1970) is a Canadian singer, songwriter and environmental activist. Early life Born and raised in Burlington, Ontario, Harmer gained her first exposure to the musician's lifestyle as a teenager, when her older sist ...

, Jim Guthrie and

Bry Webb Bryan Webb (born 1977), sometimes credited as Bry Webb, is a Canadian singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist for the indie rock band Constantines. History Webb began his musical career playing in the emo band Shoulder in 1994, re ...

Establishing Gwaii Haanas

From the 1970s through the early 1980s, plans to expand logging to Burnaby Island led to controversy, and the first concerted efforts to protect Gwaii Haanas. The "South Moresby Wilderness Proposal" was drawn up in an effort to stem natural resource exploitation. To prevent logging, the Haida Nation designated the "Haida Heritage Site" in 1985, encompassing roughly the southern third of the archipelago. Importantly, the Heritage site included a swath of land and sea, both terrestrial and marine areas. However, logging continued, amidst legal and political battles. In 1987, logging ended when the governments of Canada and British Columbia signed the ''South Moresby Memorandum of Understanding''. This accord led to the ''South Moresby Agreement'' a year later, which created ''South Moresby National Park Reserve''.AMB, Public Planning Program, Newsletter No.1, September 1993 It was not a full national park; it was an area reserved to become a national park, because there were outstanding claims to land ownership among federal and tribal governments. But the measure safeguarded the area, and permitted shared stewardship. It would be managed as if it were a national park, pending land claims.

Cooperatively managed

In 1993, the Government of Canada and the

Council of the Haida Nation The Council of the Haida Nation ("CHN") (''X̱aaydaG̱a Waadlux̱an Naay'') is the elected government of the Haida Nation. The council consists of a president and vice-president elected by popular vote, twelve regional representatives from four ele ...

signed the ''Gwaii Haanas Agreement'', which changed the name of the national park reserve to a native name. This Agreement expresses respect for both Canadian and Haida designations and interests, and includes a mutual commitment to the protection of Gwaii Haanas. Because the park reserve and the Haida Heritage Site nearly coincide (on land), its official name reflected both designations: Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site. Based on the Agreement, Gwaii Haanas is cooperatively managed by the Archipelago Management Board (AMB), which is made up of an equal number of representatives from the Council of Haida Nation and the Government of Canada. The AMB is responsible for all aspects of planning, operation, and management of Gwaii Haanas.

Gwaii Haanas National Marine Conservation Area Reserve

For the Haida, the marine and terrestrial environments are inseparable. The boundary between earth and ocean exists only on a map.Parks Canada Website
Such is not the case with the park reserve. While the heritage site includes both land and sea, the national park reserve overlaps with only the terrestrial portion of the site. The Gwaii Haanas Agreement provided for native–federal negotiations on managing the marine portion of the site, which eventually bore fruit in 2010 when an enveloping protected area was created. Like the national park reserve it surrounds, the marine reserve is reserved for future designation to full park system status, pending sea claim settlements. Meantime, the Gwaii Haanas NMCAR will balance protecting marine ecosystems, while also allowing ecolgocially sustainable use. This includes traditional harvesting, recreational and commercial fishing.AMB, Gwaii Haanas Visitor Guide, April 2008 The appearance of "Haida Heritage Site" in both the names of the national park reserve and the marine reserve is a duplication of name, but not of reference. As part of the national park reserve name, it refers to the terrestrial portion of the site. As part of the marine reserve name, it refers to the marine portion of the site. Still, there are areas of the heritage site—both land and sea—which are outside both federal reserves. These are all in the northernmost parts of the site. Gwaii Haanas National Marine Conservation Area Reserve, which covers 3,400 square kilometres, is "a primary feeding habitat" of the humpback whale (North Pacific population) protected by Canada's Species at Risk Act (SARA).Humpback whale's critical habitat off the coast of British Columbia overlaps with tankers shipping route between Canada and its eastern trade partners. In 2005 the humpback whale (North Pacific population) was listed as threatened under Canada’s Species at Risk Act (SARA). In April 19, 2014 the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) recommended an amendment to (SARA) to downgrade the status of the humpback whale off the coast of British Columbia from "threatened" to "species of special concern." With the NMCAR established, nearly 5,000 square kilometres of Gwaii Haanas are protected. This is one of the only places in the world where a representative area is protected from mountain top to ocean depth.

Gwaii Haanas Crest

The AMB's crest crafted by local Haida artist ''Giitsxaa'' represents the unique joint management relationship.

The AMB chose the sea otter and the sea urchin because of the creatures' significance in the history and tradition of the protected area and because of their ecological significance.

Populations of

sea urchin Sea urchins () are spiny, globular echinoderms in the class Echinoidea. About 950 species of sea urchin live on the seabed of every ocean and inhabit every depth zone from the intertidal seashore down to . The spherical, hard shells (tests) of ...

, a kelp-grazing species, were once kept in check by

sea otter The sea otter (''Enhydra lutris'') is a marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. Adult sea otters typically weigh between , making them the heaviest members of the weasel family, but among the small ...

s, ensuring an abundance of kelp and species that depend upon kelp communities. With the extirpation of sea otters during the

Maritime Fur Trade The maritime fur trade was a ship-based fur trade system that focused on acquiring furs of sea otters and other animals from the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast and natives of Alaska. The furs were mostly sold in China in ex ...

, the natural balance between species in the community was disturbed. As a result, the sea urchin population has increased dramatically over time and the health of kelp forests is threatened. The loss of the sea otter is a powerful reminder of the vulnerability of individual species and entire ecosystems.

World Heritage and National Historic Site Haida Village

Ninstints () or on Anthony Island, located in the southernmost part of Gwaii Haanas, just west of Kunghit Island, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a National Historic site of Canada in 1981. The remains of a Haida village on the eastern side of the island — — represent an outstanding example of a traditional Northwest Coast First Nations village site, complete with standing totem poles and the remains of cedar longhouses. Haida people have a continuing presence at and four other village sites between May to September as part of the

Haida Gwaii Watchmen Haida may refer to: Places * Haida, an old name for Nový Bor * Haida Gwaii, meaning "Islands of the People", formerly called the Queen Charlotte Islands * Haida Islands, a different archipelago near Bella Bella, British Columbia Ships * , a 19 ...

Program. Between two and four Watchmen live at each site serving as guardians to protect the natural and cultural heritage of these sites. Other historical villages within the boundaries of Gwaii Haanas included Cumshewa, Clew (Tanu) and Djí-gua.

Potential expansion

In 2004, Parks Canada, on behalf of the Government of Canada, added the entirety of Gwaii Haanas to its tentative list of potential future World Heritage Sites, pending approval by UNESCO.

Ecology

Terrain and climate

The landscapes of Gwaii Haanas vary from deep fjords to rugged mountains, salmon spawning streams to sub-

alpine tundra Alpine tundra is a type of natural region or biome that does not contain trees because it is at high elevation, with an associated alpine climate, harsh climate. As the latitude of a location approaches the poles, the threshold elevation for alp ...

. Close to 90% of Gwaii Haanas is forested, 9% is alpine and sub-alpine tundra. The remaining 1% is made up of lakes and wetlands. As water drains from the highest mountains - including the rugged

San Christoval Range The San Christoval Range is a 50 km long, jagged mountain range located on the west coast of Moresby Island, British Columbia, Canada. It is the only lineal mountain range in the Haida Gwaii and the highest peaks are just above 1000 m. The mo ...

with peaks over - it helps fill over 40 freshwater lakes. In turn, this water drains through more than 100 salmon spawning streams. The reserve includes the

Hotspring Island Hotspring Island, originally named in English as Volcanic Island and known in the Haida language as G̱andll K'in Gwaayaay ("Hot-Water-Island"), is a small island near the southeast coast of Lyell Island in the Haida Gwaii archipelago of the North ...

, with a hot spring. A small off the grid community located in Rose Harbour, Kunghit Island is thriving on the only private piece of land in the Southern Gwaii Haanas area. The community's economy is mostly based on small scale ecotourism where it is possible to find accommodation, meals, guides and sea kayaking. Rose Harbour property was until the 1940s an important whaling station off the North Coast of British Columbia.

Flora

The west coast of Gwaii Haanas can receive over of rain annually. Extreme exposure to wind and rain makes the forests on the west coast boggy and stunted, and are dominated by western red cedar and hemlock . Forests of the leeward, or eastern side of Gwaii Haanas, are classic coastal temperate rainforests, dominant overstorey species include large western hemlock,

Sitka spruce ''Picea sitchensis'', the Sitka spruce, is a large, coniferous, evergreen tree growing to almost tall, with a trunk diameter at breast height that can exceed 5 m (16 ft). It is by far the largest species of spruce and the fifth-larg ...

and western red cedar trees.

Fauna

Distinct island flora and fauna have evolved over thousands of years. Species here often differ from those found on the mainland. Many common continental species are not found on the islands, or have evolved into unique subspecies such as the black bear which is larger than its mainland cousin. Other species have been introduced relatively recently, such as the

Sitka deer The Sitka deer or Sitka black-tailed deer (''Odocoileus hemionus sitkensis'') is a subspecies of mule deer (''Odocoileus hemionus''), similar to the Columbian black-tailed subspecies (''O. h. colombianus''). Their name originates from Sitka, A ...

, ermine, raccoon,

squirrel Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae, a family that includes small or medium-size rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrels. Squ ...

and

beaver Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers ar ...

. Introduced species now exist in large numbers, much to the detriment of native plants and animals. An estimated 750,000 seabirds nest along the shoreline of Gwaii Haanas from May through August. Many are burrow-nesters, such as the

rhinoceros auklet The rhinoceros auklet (''Cerorhinca monocerata'') is a seabird and a close relative of the puffins. It is the only extant species of the genus ''Cerorhinca''. Given its close relationship with the puffins, the common name rhinoceros puffin has b ...

, ancient murrelet and tufted puffin.

Bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...

s are a common sight and nest along the coastline. Because the islands are situated along the Pacific flyway, dozens of species of migrating birds stop here in spring and fall.

Access

Gwaii Haanas came first in a survey of US and Canadian National Parks in '' National Geographic Traveler magazine'', recognized for its pristine environment and sustainable management practices. Gwaii Haanas is a remote location, accessible by sea kayak, boat or chartered floatplane only. An orientation is provided to all visitors before they enter Gwaii Haanas.

Affiliations

The museum is affiliated with: CMA,

CHIN The chin is the forward pointed part of the anterior mandible (List_of_human_anatomical_regions#Regions, mental region) below the lower lip. A fully developed human skull has a chin of between 0.7 cm and 1.1 cm. Evolution The presence of a we ...

, and Virtual Museum of Canada.

References

External links

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World Heritage Site