Historic land agreement signed by Algonquins of Ontario, provincial and federal governments

The Algonquins of Ontario, along with the federal and provincial governments, took a step towards the creation of a historic treaty on Tuesday that will define the land rights of the Algonquins of Ontario.

The three parties signed an Agreement-in-Principle (AIP) that will pave the way towards creating a modernized treaty to resolve an open land claim that covers 36,000 square kilometres from Thunder Bay to Ottawa, including Parliament Hill,, according to a Government of Ontario news release.

An AIP is a signed agreement in which the final details haven’t been fully worked out, but outlines all the main components of the potential treaty, which aims to clearly define the rights of those who live within the territory, taking into account the interests of all involved parties.

In the proposed treaty, the Algonquins of Ontario would receive $300 million in capital funding, along with more than 117,500 acres of provincial Crown land.

The AIP was created after consultations with the 10 Algonquins of Ontario communities, other Indigenous groups and the public, according to the press release.

Once a final agreement is reached, it will need to be approved by the Algonquins of Ontario and then by the federal and provincial governments.

Algonquin Park and all privately owned land will be unaffected by the treaty.