The Teck lands in the Elk Valley and Flathead are located in ʔamakʔis Ktunaxa, the traditional lands of the Ktunaxa Nation. Both the Ktunaxa Nation and Teck recognize the importance of working collaboratively with communities of interest, user groups and the provincial government to carry out a successful land management strategy.  

The lands have been managed as a community asset for several decades and provide important habitat for numerous species, such as grizzly bear, wolverine, badger, elk, lynx, mountain goat, bighorn sheep, westslope cutthroat trout and bull trout. They also hold significant cultural and community value.

In 2021, the Ktunaxa Nation and Teck signed a Joint Management Agreement for more than 7,000 hectares of land purchased by Teck in 2013 for conservation. The lands are located in ʔamakʔis Ktunaxa and in the region of Teck’s steelmaking coal operations in southeast British Columbia.

Under the Agreement, the Ktunaxa Nation and Teck agree to jointly manage the land for conservation purposes protecting significant fish and wildlife habitat. The Agreement will also support the Ktunaxa Nation Stewardship Principles, and Teck’s goal to achieve a net positive impact on biodiversity in the areas where it operates. Both parties recognize the importance of ensuring that communities of interest are involved in the conservation planning for the lands consistent with Teck’s commitment at the time of purchase.
 

Image on the left: Map of Teck conservation lands

The lands outlined on the map are privately owned by Teck. We welcome and support your responsible use of these lands but ask that you contribute to their integrity and longevity by following the stewardship guidelines outlined in the Teck Private Land Use and Stewardship Information brochure.

Image on the left: Teck private lands in the Elk Valley and Flathead

At Teck, we are working towards securing a net positive impact on biodiversity by maintaining and/or reestablishing self-sustaining landscapes and ecosystems that lead to viable long-term and diverse land uses in the areas in which we operate. 

The Elk Valley has a long history of road construction that has resulted in an extensive road network across the landscape. While roads serve an important purpose at the time of development, and subsequently for a variety of reasons, a high concentration of roads has the capacity to result in negative effects on adjacent habitat, ecosystems and wildlife. Road rehabilitation and management strategies are being explored as part of our efforts to contribute towards a reduction in cumulative impacts on regionally valued ecosystems and wildlife. 

In 2020, we gathered feedback from individuals, groups, clubs, alliances and organizations to identify an initial 89 km of potential opportunity roads for rehabilitation within the Upper Fording, Henretta Creek, Chauncey Creek, Greenhills Creek and Dry Creek watersheds that should not impact popular recreational use.

What we heard:

• Start with a focus on roads adjacent to the mines, where possible

• Maintain traditional recreational routes, trails and access, including horse and foot trails

• Rehabilitate roads within, or that provide access to ungulate overwintering habitat

• Consider rehabilitating side roads and spurs off main roads, leaving main routes

• Incorporate invasive plant treatment

Examples of road networks in the Elk Valley.

Benefits of Road Rehabilitation:

• Improved habitat quality

• Reduced wildlife mortality

• Control, eradication and prevention of invasive plant species

• Removed vectors for pollution

• Restoration of hydrological processes and drainage patterns

• Erosion control and reduced sedimentation into water bodies

• Reduced habitat fragmentation and alteration of habitats and ecosystems

• Increased habitat security, availability and quality

• Minimization of ecological impacts and wildlife disturbance

• Increased native species and carbon capture through planting and seeding

Understanding that field assessments are still required to evaluate current road condition for the purpose of building out rehabilitation plans for each area, work will aim to fully rehabilitate the area through road fill pullback, slope and material stabilization, invasive plant treatment, water management and revegetation techniques enabling the maintenance of natural surface drainage patterns, minimization of soil erosion, growth of native vegetation, and more. Revegetation will include seeding and planting native plant community compositions similar to the surrounding areas.