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Baker Lake

Baker Lake is Nunavut’s only inland community, located 320 km from the western shore of Hudson Bay. The community is a gateway to spectacular canoeing on the Thelon and Kazan Rivers, which are both designated Canadian Heritage Rivers. The massive Thelon Wildlife Sanctuary, home to caribou, geese, grizzlies, and muskox, is located to the east and can be accessed by plane from the community.

Baker Lake is home to a well known arts and crafts community that is internationally recognized for pioneering printmaking in the North.

Potential non-renewable resources in the region include: gold, diamonds, uranium, base metals, and nickel-copper platinum group elements (PGEs)

Land Use Planning

Approved Land Use Plan

The community of Baker Lake is located within the planning region of the Keewatin Regional Land Use Plan (KRLUP). The NPC reviews all project proposals in and around Baker Lake to determine if the proposed activities conform to the requirements of the KRLUP.

Draft Nunavut Land Use Plan

Between 2004 and 2011, NPC staff visited every Nunavut community to conduct individual “Use and Occupancy Mapping” interviews to collect information on traditional land use activities “within living memory”. This community land use information is included in the Draft Plan and has been used to support decision-making.

The Commission also visited the Community on November 19-20, 2013 for community engagement meetings on the Draft Plan.

Information was presented and received from participants in Baker Lake in accordance with Nunavut Planning Commission’s Engagement Strategy. The summary report of the Community Meetings on the Draft Nunavut Land Use Plan held on November 19-20, 2013 in Baker Lake can be found below.

The community views and comments have been very informative in the ongoing process of development and revisions of the Draft Nunavut Land Use Plan. In particular, all areas of importance identified by the community are included in the Draft Plan as “Community Priorities and Values”.

Fact Sheet
Region: 
Kivalliq
Population: 
1728
90% Inuit
Longitude: 
96° 4.8' W
Latitude: 
64° 18.0' N
1,600 km north of Winnipeg