Land Quality on Reserves in Ontario: Description and Implications for Land Tenure

Abstract

My research aims to identify whether land quality influences the emergence of the adoption of different patterns of land tenure on First Nations Reserves. My first research question identifies whether there is a difference in the percentage of prime agricultural land on-reserves versus off-reserves in Ontario. My second question tests the theoretically motivated hypothesis that land quality influences the adoption of Certificates of Possession (CP). I identify whether land quality impacts the adoption of the CP system. I find that the off-reserve surveyed area in Ontario has a higher percentage of prime agricultural land than the surveyed reserves in Ontario. I also present a case study of Six Nations of the Grand River to evaluate research question 2. I find that there is a relationship between a parcel’s percentage of prime agricultural land and the adoption of a CP.