The River Has Its Guardians

On Quebec's North Shore, the Magpie River, Muteshekau-shipu in Innu-aimun, flows for nearly 300 kilometres through Nitassinan, the ancestral territory of the Innu of Ekuanitshit and Uashat mak Mani-utenam. It is among the most celebrated whitewater rivers in the world, and Hydro-Québec long kept it on its list of options for hydroelectric development.

In 2021, two neighbours decided to stop waiting. On January 18, the Innu Council of Ekuanitshit adopted a resolution; on February 16, the Minganie Regional County Municipality (MRC) adopted a matching one. The Magpie became the first river in Canada recognized as a "legal person." It was granted nine rights, including the right "to live, exist and flow" and the right to take legal action. Guardians appointed jointly by the First Nation and the MRC can speak on its behalf. For the Innu of Ekuanitshit, this is nothing new: they have always been the protectors of Nitassinan, for the generations to come. In 2023, the river also became the first territory in Canada listed in the international registry of Indigenous and community conserved areas (ICCA).

One piece is still missing: official protected-area status. Quebec's environmental public hearings office (BAPE) has recommended protecting the river three times. In December 2024, the Muteshekau-shipu Alliance, which brings together the Innu Council of Ekuanitshit, the MRC, SNAP Québec and the Eaux-Vives Minganie association, submitted a protected-area proposal and called for the territory to be set aside immediately. According to SNAP Québec, the river is still not protected. On this October 5, Quebec elects its next government: the answer will be up to it. The guardians, for their part, are already at their post.