Is there a potential for wetlands restoration in the Northwest Territories?

Yes. Two wetland delineation reports in 2004 identified 18.6 acres of wetlands. Much of the Northwest Territories is only a few feet above sea level.

Filling and grading a vast swath of low-lying land for commercial use would be very expensive and probably not cost effective for business use. Turning the low-lying areas into natural habitat, on the other hand, would be a much simpler engineering feat. The ability of wetlands to capture global warming CO2 also adds merit to the natural habitat alternative.

Once conveyed to the city, the Northwest Territories will be zoned as public trust land, as required under state law. Natural resource preservation is a permitted use under public trust land zoning. Various programs exist for assisting in wetlands preservation and expansion.