The Umbrella Final Agreement (section 12.7.1) and the Yukon Environmental and Socio-Economic Assessment Act (section 44.1) specify that planning commissions do this task. However, because the North Yukon Planning Commission won't be maintained, the staff of the Yukon Land Use Planning Council (YLUPC) will do conformity checks on their behalf. Here's how it works:
When the Yukon Environmental and Socio-Economic Assessment Designated Office seeks views and information from the public and stakeholders about a proposed project, it determines if the project will fall within the North Yukon Planning Region. If so, it sends the YLUPC a letter requesting a conformity check. YLUPC staff then visit YESAB's online registry (YOR) to read the project's specifications. Staff then fill in a form that indicates whether or not a project would conform with the plan, and what practices and strategies recommended in the plan would be the most relevant. We are planning on indicating on our on-line map (the Planning Atlas) where conformity-checked projects are to occur. In the meantime, completed conformity checks are listed below, using YESAB's project numbering system:
- 2010-0070: Old Crow Road and Drainage System Upgrades (May 28, 2010)
- 2010-0149: Old Crow North Bypass Road (June 30, 2010)
- 2010-0157: Porcupine River Gravel Development (July 28, 2010)
- 2010-0206: Old Crow Winter Road (December 21, 2010)
- 2011-0046: Old Crow Water System Upgrades (April 13, 2011)
- 2011-0131: Old Crow Water License (September 13, 2011)
- 2011-0254: YECL Air Emissions Permit Renewal 2011 – Old Crow (November 24, 2011)
Part of the conformity check includes the comparison between projected landscape disturbance indicators for each of the Landscape Management Units (LMUs) potentially affected by the project and the cautionary and critical levels assigned to each LMU. Two indicators are assessed: new surface disturbance (or 'footprint'), and new linear disturbance. To do this, the YLUPC need an estimate of the current amount of each disturbance indicator. Unfortunately, these estimates have not yet been determined by the Yukon Government, but are expected to be completed in the coming years. Until these estimates are published, the YLUPC usually cannot determine if a proposal will result in excessive landscape disturbance or not. As a result, many conformity checks will consist of a list of relevant mitigative strategies and practices.
