The Nisgaʼa Final Agreement was the first modern comprehensive treaty signed by a First Nation in British Columbia since 1899, granting the Nisgaʼa Nation self-governance over land and resources.
Key Facts
- Date Signed
- 27 May 1998
- Effective Date
- 11 May 2000
- Land Recognized
- Nearly 2,000 km²
- Water Reservation
- 300,000 cubic decametres (~240,000 acre-feet)
- Official Nisgaʼa Placenames
- 31
- Previous BC Treaty
- Treaty 8, 1899 (northeastern BC)
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The Nisgaʼa Nation had long sought formal recognition of their ancestral lands in the Nass River valley. British Columbia had not concluded a comprehensive treaty with a First Nation since the Douglas Treaties of 1854 and Treaty 8 in 1899, leaving land rights unresolved for over a century.
On 27 May 1998, representatives of the Nisgaʼa Nation—Joseph Gosnell, Nelson Leeson, and Edmond Wright—along with Premier Glen Clark signed the Nisgaʼa Final Agreement with British Columbia. Federal Minister Jane Stewart signed on 4 May 1999, completing a tripartite settlement covering land, water rights, and self-governance.
The agreement officially recognized nearly 2,000 km² of Nisgaʼa territory in the Nass River valley, established a water reservation, created Bear Glacier Provincial Park, and gave the Nisgaʼa control over forestry and fishing resources. It became the first modern comprehensive treaty in British Columbia, setting a precedent for future First Nations land negotiations in the province.
Political Outcome
The Nisgaʼa Nation gained formal recognition of ~2,000 km² of ancestral territory, a water reservation, and self-governance rights over land and natural resources in the Nass River valley.
Nisgaʼa land and resource rights unrecognized under formal treaty in British Columbia since 1899
Nisgaʼa Nation holds constitutionally protected title and self-governance over their territory