Arctic Biodiversity Caribou Conservation planning Natural resource development

Johnson and Ray Comments: Grays Bay Road and Port Project Impact Statement - Caribou

Johnson, C. J., & Ray, J.

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Key points

During the Nunavut Impact Review Board’s Information Request stage, WCS Canada’s Justina Ray and caribou ecologist Chris Johnson (University of Northern British Columbia) reviewed the Grays Bay Road and Port Project Impact Statement through a caribou lens. The submission identifies information needed to test the proponent’s conclusion that the project’s residual and cumulative effects on caribou would be insignificant.

• The assessment relies heavily on recent Bathurst caribou ranges from a period when the herd was severely depleted. It should test how effects could change if the herd recovers or its seasonal ranges shift over the life of the project.
• Expert modelling included in the Impact Statement predicts how exposure to the road could affect caribou body condition, pregnancy, calf survival, and population trajectory. The assessment should explain how these findings informed its conclusion that effects on the Bathurst herd would be insignificant.
• The road is intended to enable future mines and infrastructure, but their combined effects on caribou are not fully accounted for. The assessment’s own analysis shows that cumulative disturbance would move part of the Bathurst range from a “desirable” to a more concerning “cautionary” level.
• The assessment assumes that shipping will occur only during the open-water season and avoid disrupting Dolphin and Union caribou migration across sea ice. It should clarify whether this restriction will bind future operations and what further review would be required if the shipping season expands.
• The Impact Statement documents extensive Inuit, Indigenous, and community knowledge but does not consistently show how that knowledge shaped assessment boundaries, future scenarios, effects analysis, mitigation commitments, or conclusions.

Recommended citation

Johnson, C. J., & Ray, J. (2026). Johnson and Ray Comments: Grays Bay Road and Port Project Impact Statement - Caribou. Wildlife Conservation Society Canada [WCS Canada]. https://wcscanada.org/resources/johnson-and-ray-comments-grays-bay-road-and-port-project-impact-statement-caribou/