The Muskwa-Kechika Management Area (M-K or M-KMA) is a provincially-run tract of land in the far north of

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. It has an advisory board that counsels the government on land-use decisions. Established by provincial government legislation in 1998, the area is meant to be preserved as a wild area, but

development Development or developing may refer to: Arts *Development (music), the process by which thematic material is reshaped * Photographic development *Filmmaking, development phase, including finance and budgeting * Development hell, when a proje ...

is not outright forbidden; the land is divided into different zones, with varying levels of protection, although the whole area is to be used according to an overall plan. The original concept called for 25% of the land to be turned into provincial parks, 60% to become "special management zones" (where limited mining and oil/gas drilling would be permitted), and 15% to become "special wild land zones", where logging would be prohibited. The original size of the M-KMA was . However, in 2000, with the approval of the Mackenzie Land and Resource Management Plan (LRMP), over were added to the M-KMA for a total area of —an area slightly smaller than the US state of

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

, or the entire island of

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, or seven times the size of

Yellowstone National Park Yellowstone National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in the northwest corner of Wyoming, with small portions extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U ...

, in

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

Name and geography

The area is named after the Muskwa River and Muskwa Ranges (from the , "

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family (biology), family Ursidae (). They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats ...

") and the Kechika River and Kechika Ranges (Kechika means "long inclining river"). The area include the Northern Rocky Mountains to the north of Lake Williston and the Rocky Mountain Foothills north of the Peace River and much of the southeastern Cassiar Mountains and a small portion of the northeastern

Omineca Mountains The Omineca Mountains, also known as "the Ominecas", are a group of remote mountain ranges in the Boreal Cordillera of north-central British Columbia, Canada. They are bounded by the Finlay River on the north, the Rocky Mountain Trench (here fil ...

. With the southern Selwyn and Mackenzie Mountains north of the

Liard River The Liard River of the Boreal forest of Canada, North American boreal forest flows through Yukon, British Columbia and the Northwest Territories, Canada. Rising in the Saint Cyr Range of the Pelly Mountains in southeastern Yukon, it flows sout ...

, the area defines the Boreal Cordillera Ecozone.

Parks and protected areas

(with area)Muskwa-Kechika.com "Protected Areas" page
* Dall River Old Growth Provincial Park * Denetiah Provincial Park & Protected Area * Dune Za Keyih Provincial Park & Protected Area * Finlay-Russel Provincial Park & Protected Area * Graham-Laurier Provincial Park *

Horneline Creek Provincial Park Horneline Creek Provincial Park is a List of British Columbia provincial parks, provincial park in far northern British Columbia, Canada. It is located west of the Kechika River about 130 km south of Lower Post, British Columbia, Lower Post ...

* Kwadacha Wilderness Provincial Park * Liard River Corridor/West Provincial Parks & Protected Area * Liard River Hot Springs Provincial Park * Muncho Lake Provincial Park * Northern Rocky Mountains Provincial Park & Protected Area * Ospika-Cones Ecological Reserve * Prophet River Hot Springs Provincial Park * Redfern-Keily Provincial Park * Sikanni Chief River Ecological Reserve * Stone Mountain Provincial Park * Toad River Hotsprings Provincial Park

Notes

References

External links

*
Map

Map of oil and gas tenures

Map of mineral tenures

Guide-Outfitter boundaries map

Trapline Boundaries map
{{British Columbia parks Geography of British Columbia Canadian Rockies Northern Interior of British Columbia