Yukon First Nations promise financial support for Peel legal fight

Chiefs at a leadership meeting of the Council of Yukon First Nations pledged support for a Peel watershed land use legal defence fund Wednesday, as parties prepare to head back to court.

In December, ahistoric Yukon Supreme Court ruling on the watershedfound that the Yukon government'smodifications to the Peel land use plan did not respect the planning process set out in the territorys final agreements with First Nations.The territorial government is appealing that decision.

Ed Champion, chief of the Na-Cho Nyak Dun First Nation, says of the defence fund that "all the First Nations have come together in unification to take on this important matter.They're recognizing that this is an attack on our final agreements, and we are coming together collectively to work together to solve that.

"It's also now all the First Nations, so it's really quite major. It's a strong statement," he says.

Premier Darrell Pasloski has said the final decision on the use of Crown land should restwith the Yukon government.

It's not known when the Yukon Court of Appeal will review the Peel case.