Whose land is it anyway? That’s the 20-year, nine-million-acre question. Negotiations over the Algonquin Land Claim—the area covers about 8.9 million acres within the Ottawa River and Mattawa River watersheds—began back in 1991. In December 2012, negotiators released a draft of a potential settlement, currently open for review. If finalized, this agreement would transfer at least 117,500 acres of Crown land to the Algonquins of Ontario. “It’s a fairly significant change in land use on a fairly significant piece of real estate,” says Terry Rees, the executive director of the Federation of Ontario Cottagers’ Associations. And it’s noteworthy for some cottagers (although private property won’t be expropriated). “What will be the ultimate use of that land? It’s entirely possible that it won’t just be left as trees and rocks,” says Rees. The final settlement, if it goes through, will be years in the making. For more information, public meeting dates, to view the draft document, or to see a more detailed version of the map below, visit ontario.ca/landclaims.
