Critical Habitat Protection Regulations (CHPR)

Summary#

Environment and Climate Change Canada has published a notice of intent to make the Critical Habitat Protection Regulations (CHPR) under the Species at Risk Act (SARA). The plan is to automatically protect the critical habitat of listed terrestrial species on applicable federal lands within 180 days of that habitat being identified; the government is now asking for feedback during a 60-day comment period that ends September 16, 2026.

What it does#

• Automatically prohibits destruction of critical habitat for listed terrestrial species on applicable federal lands 180 days after that habitat is identified in a final recovery strategy or action plan.
• Moves the protection tool from one-off orders to a single regulation to centralize and speed up protections.
• Would not apply to critical habitat for aquatic species (those would be handled differently).
• Intends to exclude First Nations reserve land and lands administered by the commissioners of Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut (so those places would use other tools or agreements).
• Existing recovery strategies with identified critical habitat would be brought under the new regulation after a notice is published in the Canada Gazette.
• This is a notice of intent and consultation — it is not a final regulation.

Who's affected#

• Environment and Climate Change Canada and Parks Canada, as the federal managers implementing the rules.
• Federal departments and agencies that own or manage applicable federal lands.
• Indigenous peoples and governments (the notice says they will be engaged).
• People and businesses that carry out activities on federal lands that could affect habitat (e.g., developments, land management, resource activities).
• Conservation groups and the general public interested in species recovery and habitat protection.

Why it matters#

• It would make habitat protection faster and more consistent on federal lands by removing the need for separate, species-by-species protection orders.
• For anyone working, developing, or managing federally owned land, it could change what activities are allowed where protected habitat exists.
• It clarifies that aquatic species and certain lands (reserves and devolved territorial lands) are handled differently, so impacts will vary by location and species.
• This is an early-stage consultation — comments are open until September 16, 2026, so stakeholders can still influence the design of the regulation.