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DESCRIPTION:

The North Yorston Conservation Reserve is located west of the town of Latchford within the Yorston River/Lady Evelyn River/Sturgeon River watersheds. The conservation reserve includes part of the headwaters for the Sturgeon, Yorston, Pilgrim, and Lady Evelyn Rivers. Other values and uses within the reserve include the old growth white pine stands, scenic cliffs, and the good potential for backcountry hiking trails. The reserve also contains four canoe routes, numerous campsites, and fifteen portages.

The North Yorston Conservation Reserve was regulated on June 25, 2004.

This area contains lake(s) designated for lake trout management. For a current list of designated lakes associated with this area, refer to the Inland Ontario Lakes Designated for Lake Trout Management (2006) accessible in the Source of Direction portion of this policy report.

LAND USE INTENT:

The intent of the North Yorston Conservation Reserve is to protect the park-related values of the Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Wilderness Park by maintaining ecosystem integrity and offering a remote recreational area for canoeing, hiking, and other low-impact backcountry recreation activities.

The land use concerns in this area include access to Land Use Permits. The management area objectives are to ensure motorized activities do not occur within the reserve, allow natural forest processes to complement adjacent park management, and to consider possible remote non-motorized recreational trail development in the future.

MANAGEMENT DIRECTION:

Those uses and management activities not listed in the following table are governed by existing conservation reserve policy, the Temagami Land Use Plan (1997), and the Temagami Integrated Planning Resource Management Plan for Conservation Reserves (2007).

Any new uses and commercial activities associated with conservation reserves will be considered on a case-by-case basis and will be required to pass a test of compatibility to be acceptable. Compatibility is normally determined through a planning process.

The following tables aim to present current information. However, with the passage of new legislation, updates to provincial policy, and the development of protected areas management direction documents, certain content elements may be out-of-date.

Commercial Activities

Activity	Permitted	Guidelines
Aggregate Extraction	No
Bait Fishing, Existing	Yes	Existing use permitted to continue if it does not impact the natural heritage values for which the area was established.
Bait Fishing, New	Maybe	New operations can be considered, subject to the 'test of compatibility'.
Bear Hunting by Non-residents (guided), Existing	Yes	Existing Bear Management Areas (BMA) permitted to continue. Transfer of BMA holder may be permitted. No new bear hunting facilities are permitted.
Bear Hunting by Non-residents (guided), New	No
Boat Caches (Managed)	No
Commercial Fishing, Existing	Yes	Existing use permitted to continue if it does not impact the natural heritage values for which the area was established.
Commercial Fishing, New	Maybe	New operations can be considered, subject to the 'test of compatibility'.
Commercial Fur Harvesting, Existing	Yes	Existing use permitted to continue if it does not impact the natural heritage values for which the area was established. Existing trap cabins can continue.
Commercial Fur Harvesting, New	Maybe	New cabins are not permitted. New operations can be considered, subject to the 'test of compatibility'.
Commercial Power Generation Development	No
Commercial Timber Harvest	No
Commercial Tourism (Services and/or Facilities), Existing	Yes	Existing authorized facilities and services can continue if it does not impact the natural heritage values for which the area was established.
Commercial Tourism (Services and/or Facilities), New	No	No new cottaging or main base tourism development permitted; however, low-intensity tourism/recreation infrastructure (e.g., huts, warm-up shelters, campsites) may be permitted.
Energy Transmission and Communications Corridors, Existing	Yes
Energy Transmission and Communications Corridors, New	Maybe	As per PPCRA Section 20. New energy transmission, communication and transportation corridors are discouraged within the boundaries of the conservation reserve.
Food Harvest (Commercial), Existing	Maybe	No commercial food harvesting operations currently exist.
Food Harvest (Commercial), New	Maybe	Subject to further planning and the ‘test of compatibility’.
Mineral Exploration and Development	No
Peat Extraction	No
Wild Rice Harvesting, Existing	No	No commercial wild rice harvesting operations currently exist.
Wild Rice Harvesting, New	Maybe	Subject to further planning and the ‘test of compatibility’.

Land and Resource Management Activities

Activity	Permitted	Guidelines
Crown Land Disposition, Commercial or Public Use	Maybe	No new cottages or main base tourism development permitted; however; low-intensity tourism/recreation infrastructure (e.g., huts, warm-up shelters, campsites) may be considered. Sale of lands is not permitted. Renewals of existing leases or land use permits are permitted. Requests for transfer of tenure will be considered in the context of the Resource Management Plan. New leases or land use permits permitted for authorized activities.
Crown Land Disposition, Private Use	Maybe	Sale of lands is not permitted. Renewals of existing leases or land use permits are permitted. Requests for transfer of tenure will be considered in the context of the Resource Management Plan. Land use permits permitted for authorized activities.
Fire Suppression	Yes	All wildfire occurrences will be considered a high priority and will actively be suppressed until such time as policy directions change (refer to Forest Fire Management Strategy for Ontario, 2004).
Fish Habitat Management	Maybe
Fish Stocking, Native Species	Maybe	Conservation Reserves policy indicates that 'featured species management' may be permitted. No explicit guidelines are included on fish stocking.
Insect/disease Suppression	Maybe	Programs may be developed to control forest insects and diseases where there is a concern that significant values may be compromised.
Inventory/Monitoring	Yes	Inventories, assessments or monitoring programs should follow direction and methods established through MNR's Inventory, Monitoring and Assessment Reporting (IMAR) program and should be linked to district sustainability objectives and initiatives or future recreational needs.
Prescribed Burning	Maybe	Prescribed burning will be conducted only under the direction of the provincial fire strategy and authorized for the conservation reserve under a separate vegetation management plan.
Private Recreation Camp, Existing	Yes	Existing camps permitted to continue.
Private Recreation Camp, New	No
Road Development and Maintenance, Existing	No	This conservation reserve is managed as a roadless, non motorized area with planned ATV access to the LUP holder on Regan Lake only. Access roads will naturally rehabilitate.
Road Development and Maintenance, New	No
Vegetation Management	Maybe	Forest ecosystem renewal and maintenance as stated for this conservation reserve under the Temagami Land Use Plan will only be entertained via a separate vegetation management plan.
Wildlife Population Management	Maybe

Recreation Activities and Facilities

Activity	Permitted	Guidelines
Aircraft Landing	Yes
All Terrain Vehicle Use, Off Trails	No
All Terrain Vehicle Use, On Trails	No	With the exception of ATV use by the Land Use Permit holder on Regan Lake on authorized trails,
Campgrounds	No
Food Gathering	Yes	For personal use only.
Horseback Riding (trail)	Yes	Horseback riding on authorized trails is permitted.
Hunting	Yes	Hunting is permitted in accordance with the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act and regulations. For more information, visit https://www.ontario.ca/hunting. Some municipalities have by-laws that apply to hunting including restricting the discharge of firearms. Check with the local municipal office for details.
Motor Boat Use, Commercial	Yes	On Regan Lake only.
Motor Boat Use, Private	Yes	On Regan Lake only.
Mountain Bike Use	Yes	Mountain bike use on authorized trails is permitted.
Non-motorized Recreation Travel	Yes
Road Use (public), Existing	No	With the exception of ATV and snowmobile use by the Land Use Permit holder to Regan Lake only on authorized roads.
Road Use (public), New	No
Rock Climbing	Maybe
Snowmobiling, Off Trails	No
Snowmobiling, On Trails	No	With the exception of the Land Use Permit holder on Regan Lake on authorized trails only.
Sport Fishing	Yes	Recreational fishing is permitted in accordance with the Ontario Fishery Regulations. For more information, visit https://www.ontario.ca/fishing and review the Ontario Recreational Fishing Regulations Summary or Fish ON-Line to determine the seasons, catch limits and other restrictions that apply in this area including the location of fish sanctuaries.
Trail Development, Existing	Yes	Existing authorized non-motorized trails (e.g., hiking, skiing) can continue if they do not impact the natural heritage values for which the area was established.
Trail Development, New	No	No new motorized trail development is permitted; however, non-motorized trail development (e.g., hiking) may be permitted subject to a ‘test of compatibility’ and review through an appropriate planning process.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Note: MNR will consider the Land Use Intent and Management Direction outlined in this policy report when reviewing applications for permitted activities that require licences, leases, permits, or other forms of approval. The review of individual applications involves the consideration of a variety of factors and requirements on a site-specific basis in addition to land use policy.

SOURCE OF DIRECTION:
Provincial Parks and Conservation Reserves Act (2006)
Amendment to Area-specific Crown Land Use Policy #2008-010 (2009)
Approved Management Direction for Conservation Reserves (2013)
Amendment to Area-specific Crown Land Use Policy #2011-011 (2013)
Forest Fire Management Strategy (2004)
Temagami Integrated Plan for Conservation Reserves (2007) (2007)
Temagami Land Use Plan (1997)
Amendment to Area-specific Crown Land Use Policy #2004-013 (2005)
Conservation Reserve Policy (1997)

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