Notice
This website will change as a result of the dissolution of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada. Consult the new Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada home page or the new Indigenous Services Canada home page.
This website will change as a result of the dissolution of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada. Consult the new Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada home page or the new Indigenous Services Canada home page.
The Canol Trail was used as part of the CANOL (Canadian Oil) Project, a cooperative effort of the United States and Canada during the Second World War to supply crude oil from Norman Wells, Northwest Territories, to Whitehorse, Yukon. Local Dene and Métis people were instrumental to the project in identifying the viable route across the rough terrain.
Oil flowed through the pipeline for about a year, starting in April 1944. Several salvage operations on the abandoned project have been conducted, but remnants of it remain along the trail.
The goal of the Canol Trail Remediation Project is to reduce major environmental and human health risks associated with the abandoned pipeline and related infrastructure.
Remediation activities began in 2018, with an expected completion date of March 31, 2020. As part of the Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan (FCSAP) procedures, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) will monitor the site once remediation is complete to ensure the clean-up work is effective.
Remediation activities will resume along the Canol Trail in June 2019. Crews will work in the area east of Mile 222 near the Yukon border. During this time, be aware of increased helicopter traffic in the area and activities on the ground. Please give crews the necessary space to safely complete remediation activities.
For your added safety, please notify the Project Team if you plan to travel along the trail during this time by calling +1 867-669-2534.
2018 | From June to September 2018, between Doi T'oh Canyon and Mile 160, the Project Team:
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2017 |
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2016 | Remedial and risk management options were developed and the preferred options were selected by the Canol Trail Remediation Working Group. The Working Group includes:
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2007–2014 |
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In addition to remediation activities that fall under the Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan (FCSAP), the Government of Canada has provided funding for a program to remove telegraph wire that endangered wildlife along the Canol Trail.
In addition to remediation activities that fall under the FCSAP, the Government of Canada has provided funding for a program to remove telegraph wire that endangered wildlife along the Canol Trail.
In 2015, CIRNAC provided funding for community capacity building and wire clean-up for 116 km of the trail, in partnership with the GNWT and the Doi T'oh Territorial Park Corporation (DTPC). In 2016, CIRNAC funded further work and participants cleared wire from 126 km of the most challenging terrain on the trail. The wire was cut and stock-piled in key locations to facilitate future removal. This program provided local workers with training in project management, field operations and occupational health and safety.
This program continued in 2017 and successfully removed an additional 129 km of wire. In total over the three-year program, wire was removed from over 322 km along the Canol Trail. This was enough to fill 75 environment bags, which have been collected and securely stored for disposal.
The Canol Trail is located in the Sahtu settlement area. In 2015, the Doi T'oh Territorial Park Corporation (DTPC) was formed to work with the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) to plan and manage a Territorial Park to be created pursuant to clause 17.3 of the Sahtu Dene and Metis Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement.
Members of the DTPC include:
CIRNAC meets regularly with the Canol Trail Remediation Working Group and the GNWT to share information and complete work that could support potential park development in the future.