Courtesy Environment and Natural Resources Canada

The province is launching a new program to protect caribou.

The Caribou Conservation Program makes available $20 million for projects focusing on habitat protection and research projects.

This can include habitat management/restoration, monitoring, reducing threats, and gathering, sharing, or incorporating local and Indigenous traditional knowledge about caribou.

The funding is available to non-profit organizations, Indigenous communities and others dedicated to conservation efforts.

“Caribou are integral to our province, and it is critical that we invest in activities that improve conditions for this iconic species,” says David Piccini, Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, in a statement. “Through the launch of this new program – the largest single investment dedicated to caribou in Ontario’s history – we are taking meaningful action on caribou conservation and recovery.”

The program says the program is a way Ontario is implementing the Agreement for the Conservation of Caribou, Boreal Population in Ontario.

The five-year conservation agreement was reached in 2022 with the federal government and provides a framework for establishing collaborative commitments, including habitat management, protection and restoration activities aimed at protecting and recovering caribou.

Boreal woodland caribou, prominent in northwestern Ontario, is identified as a threatened species and numbers about 5,000 in the province.

Applications for funding will be accepted until September 28, with successful projects to be announced next spring.