Pituamkek National Park Reserve

On July 4, 2024, the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Minister responsible for Parks Canada, with Chief Darlene Bernard of Lennox Island First Nation, and Chief Junior Gould of Abegweit First Nation, signed an agreement to establish Pituamkek National Park Reserve, the 48th National Park in Canada. It is located in northwestern Epekwitk (Prince Edward Island), near Lennox Island First Nation.

Working together, the Government of Canada and the Mi’kmaq Epekwitnewaq Kapmntemuow (the Mi’kmaq Nation Government of P.E.I.) are protecting this iconic natural and cultural landscape for future generations. Pituamkek National Park Reserve was established in collaboration between L’nuey, Parks Canada, Island Nature Trust, the Nature Conservancy of Canada, and the Province of Prince Edward Island.

About Pituamkek

Located in northwestern Prince Edward Island (Epekwitk), the area known in the Mi’kmaq language as Pituamkek (Bee-DOO-um-gek), which means ‘At the Long Sand Dune’, and in English as Hog Island and the Sandhills, is rich in ancient Mi’kmaq history. The area is also home to an ongoing tradition of Mi’kmaq land and resource use.

Anko’tmu’kw aq mui’watmu’kw maqmikeminu tujiw ta’n aq wjit me’j teli-tko’tmu’kw kiskuk
To preserve and celebrate the ancestral and present connection to the land.

For thousands of years, Pituamkek has been important to the Mi’kmaq of Epekwitk (Prince Edward Island).

In addition to the rich Mi’kmaq heritage, Pituamkek (Hog Island Sandhills) offers a series of stunning landscapes ranging from coastal dune systems to old-growth forests and unique geology, including Prince Edward Island’s only igneous rock incursion.

In August 2019, the Government of Canada, the Government of Prince Edward Island, and the Mi’kmaq Governments of Lennox Island and Abegweit First Nations announced the launch of a feasibility assessment on the establishment of a national park reserve in Pituamkek.

A new national park reserve presents an opportunity to strengthen a nation-to-nation relationship with the Mi’kmaq of PEI, and will contribute to Canada and Prince Edward Island’s growing network of protected and conserved areas. These protected areas help safeguard Canada’s biodiversity and provide opportunities for Canadians to experience the outdoors, learn about our environment, and significantly contribute to the protection and preservation of Canada’s most vulnerable ecosystems.

What We Heard

From June 4, 2021 to July 23, 2021, Parks Canada and L’nuey, representing the Mi’kmaq of PEI, invited partners, stakeholders and the public to provide their input on key aspects for consideration in establishing a new national park reserve. A summary of the results of the public consultation through a “What We Heard” report, which was developed by a third-party consultant, is below.

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