Lelu Island Declaration was a politically significant statement signed at the Salmon Nation Summit on , by a coalition of Hereditary Chiefs, citizens of the Nine Allied Tribes of Lax Kw'alaams, environmental groups, and politicians declaring that Lelu Island, and Flora and Agnew Banks in British Columbia will be protected from industrial development and held in trust for all time.
The declaration was explicitly framed as a defense of one of the most ecologically important salmon habitats in the Skeena River estuary, part of the secondâÂÂlargest salmonâÂÂproducing river system in British Columbia. This was significant because it demonstrated a broad indigenousâÂÂenvironmental coalition uniting multiple nations and communities across the Skeena watershed. By assembling more than 300 hereditary and elected First Nations leaders, scientists, politicians, and other stakeholders at the Salmon Nation Summit, the declaration put intense public pressure on both the Government of British Columbia and Government of Canada over managing willful ignorance and indigenous rights.
The declaration was also significant in highlighting internal political divisions among Indigenous communities. This underscored broader complexities in governance, and how different stakeholders navigate natural resource management, consultation, and representation.
The text of what is generally characterized as the full statement, which reads as follows:
In 2014, TsilhqotâÂÂin Nation v. British Columbia established a legal context of indigenous rights and stewardship arguments influencing government decisions on development projects.
Petronas, a Malaysian state-owned company, proposes a liquefied natural gas terminal on Lelu Island in the Skeena River estuary, British Columbia.
On an open letter critique of the assessment of environmental risks of the LNG project, highlighted concerns about ecosystem impacts, and was signed by more than 130 scientists.
Hereditary chiefs from multiple First Nations, environmental groups, scientists, and politicians convene at the two-day Salmon Nation Summit. The Lelu Island Declaration is issued, calling for permanent protection of the island and surrounding banks from industrial development.
The Declaration is now regarded as a milestone in Canadian conservation politics. Ongoing advocacy pushes for permanent protection of the island and surrounding banks.
Since 2020, the global LNG market has been predicted to be oversupplied by the end of this decade, it appears British Columbia is likely to lose out to competition from producers in Qatar, the United States of America and Mozambique.
On SkeenaWild Conservation Trust filed an application for judicial review in the Federal Court. The judicial review application was never decided, on the case was withdrawn after Petronas, the primary proponent, abandoned the project.
The provinceâÂÂs Cumulative Effects Framework (updated through 2025) show that risk assessments and resource decisionâÂÂmaking now attempt to embed indigenous engagement and value assessment,<reF> </ref> a shift consistent with the kinds of debates the Declaration helped amplify.